Ptsd/ Anxiety And Intelligence

[czerkawski]

Talking to my therapist recently about anxiety brought forward a different angle with regards to PTSD/Anxiety. She said (and specializes in trauma) that people with above average intelligence are more likely to develop anxiety issues because they tend to "think" more than the average person. They have an ability to think their way into problems that may or may not exist, versus a person of lower intelligence who may not be capable of formulating the same potential scenarios in their minds that provoke anxiety.

I also post on sports forums (hockey and basketball) and the quality and depth of conversation is vastly superior on this board. Some people here can describe issues very eloquently and in great detail, while I get the sense that others hold back out of fear.

I feel like I'm slightly above average in the intelligence department, and I also happen to be suffering from great amounts of anxiety. Coincidence? Maybe or maybe not. Obviously life experiences play a huge role in the development of anxiety issues, but why can some situations leave someone traumatized, while others may be able to just shake it off.

Anyway, obviously it's not a set rule, just some food for thought.

 

[Kimpersonal]

People with PTSD do not feel safe. Intelligent people do not feel safe. The world is unsafe and anyone who disagrees has never felt traumatization, is living in a perpetual delusion or is clearly lacking in mental aptitude. Just my opinion.

 

[mamachick]

That is the same principal as intellegent people who have a mild traumatic brain injury. (mild = time of loss of consciousness, not that the level of brain damage is necessarily mild)

Intellegent people with a brain injury notice the differences quite well, which cause them more affective symptoms (depression and anxiety). They are aware they are not the same. Those with a more significant brain injury do not have the intellegence to comprehend how they are different, and may remain happier for it. Kind of like ignorance is bliss I guess.

I have friends who think I am so overly cautious about walking alone at night, never leaving a drink unattended or accepting one from a stranger, etc. Not only my own stuff, but my line of work has left me knowing how a man can reach over the bar for a pretzel and from an eye dropper, drug someones drink.