Rant... I'll Give Them "Get Over It"

[reallydown]

I just want to say that I am sick of people who have no idea what this is like saying things like "get over it" or, "move on" or "cheer up"...YES people...I WANT to get over it..."tiny" little problem there...we CAN'T just "get over it"!!!!! Seriously...what do they think? that it's fun-- when you're depressed all the time? when you feel guilty about even being alive? when you lose friends because you can't help snapping at them for the littlest things?when you can't trust anybody? when images of dead people lying in pools of blood haunt you; when you can't enjoy halloween because the noise of fircrackers reminds you of daily shooting/shelling? when you don't see yourself alive in the next 10 years or so?...(just a few of my daily experiences)

and then...when you tell them you have (or potentially have PTSD)--they, a) think you're a raving lunatic (well, i guess give them SOME credit on that one, :P) b) that you're a hypochondriac...and who knows what else goes through their minds!?!

anyway, i'm sure many ppl here know exactly what i'm talking about...i still needed the rant though :P

RD

 

[YoungAndAngry]

Well said RD,
well said.

 

[Nam]

We have been there!!! Yeah, I try to talk back at them saying, "Does this look like fun to you? You think I choose to be here like this?" Yeah...it's hard to convince someone how serious it is. It is nearly impossible for someone to understand it that hasn't gone through it themselves. And even if we do try to convince them, I usually come across as a bit psycho and even a bit of a b**ch. It's frustrating as hell. This is the perfect place to rant about that.

I think the worst comment I got was from my parents when I told them that I was seeing a therapist. They said, "Psychiatrists are a bunch of quacks treating more quacks." So basically they called me a quack. Nice.

Some people are very uneducated about mental illnesses and how serious it is. When there is a physcial illness that has a significant death rate, it is a serious illness. But anytime someone talks about a mental illness with just as high of a death rate, it's somehow only the patient's fault they have it. Or that we are not strong enough...or just acting out, wanting attention. All of those types of thoughts are completely wrong when it comes to PTSD. I would not wish this on the worst criminal in the world. It's a life sentence of torture... So that said, we just have to remember that it is ignorance.

We have thoughts and feelings that go so much deeper. And remember if we can feel the depth of sorrow, imagine how intense the happiness will be....

 

[anthony]

Yer... well vented RD. I have been through it before... but then me being me, also told them to go f*ck themselves at the time if threatened them that if they said crap like that to me again, I would start breaking their bones, one at a time... never had much problem after that. Yes, I used to be pretty nasty... and I am not just saying that. I know better now, and people who say things like that, I just wait for the day when something happens to them, and someone tells them to get over it, or live with it.

 

[reallydown]

yeah..i've been tempted to tell them all sorts of things...but thus far i've managed not to...though, if it keeps happening --no guarantees...

 

[Deleted member 3]

From a spouses point of view, you guys are not the only ones to get frustrated with that attitude. I'll be the first to admit that I was guilty of that sin at the very beginning but I have seen, first hand the real impact of mental illness. After I started to educate myself and Anthony started to get treatment you would not believe that crap that I had to deal with regarding this. Especially, while Anthony was still in the Army. People used to come up to me at various times enquiring about his welfare. Sure some of them were genuine and others were just plain nosy and were quick to imply that there was nothing really wrong with him. He could go back to work if he really wanted to etc, etc. Like I have said to Anthony many times, if people only really knew the impact of PTSD on lives, you just wouldn't put yourself or your families through it by choice. Who would really choose to re-live trauma, every day of their lives, so that it impacts on every facet including your physical health?

 

[reallydown]

Exactly--I guess many people take the "if it's there, I'll be able to tell" attitude towards this and similar problems...so when they can't "tell" they just assume that there's nothing there...

 

[reallydown]

It happened again...

:angry-fla oooy...it happened agaian!!! "maybe you need to relax"..."maybe you should get some sleep"..."maybe you should try to forget the past"...I WOULD IF I COULD!!!!!! that's the whole bloody point...i CAN'T!!!:angry-fla

 

[nml]

What others think and say is exactly what I use to think and say. One of the reasons I had a hard time accepting until I was further educated and had to go through more stress which in turn triggered me.

When I went into AA, my life changed. Basically my whole surroundings changed as far as people in my world. Here again, my life is changing and the same people are not there. Its about change. I dotn care what "they" think or say. Its where my lifeis going and Ihave a choice to stay stuck in the misery or get better and learn a new way of living. Misery loves company.

 

[anthony]

Misery loves company.

Well said... it very much seems to revolve that way. Someone is miserable, so they endevour to bring down everyone surrounding them.