"Shocking" Media - Responses Are Appreciated For A Research Question

[jenh]

Hi everyone,

I've just recently joined the forum.

I haven't been diagnosed, but I do experience many PTSD symptoms after my partner took his own life last year and I was the one to discover him in our apartment. I'm hoping to gain some support and insight from all of you.. and it would be nice to relate to someone who had a similar experience. Friends just don't understand..

One of the major problems I've been having is dealing with the shocking nature of it all. I'm a student at the University of Toronto, and I'm writing a research paper on shocking media & it's effects on those who have experienced traumatic events.

I would like to get a thread going about how people feel when they are bombarded by images, commercials, ads, etc. that have violent, or gory subject matter. Personally, I get very upset when I see an ad for a horror film (like Saw). It usually upsets a good portion of my day because it brings back the shocking memories & feelings. Does anyone else feel like this? It would be great to get a discussion going about how you feel about mass media since being traumatized in some way. How it effects you, whether or not you feel differently about it, etc.

What has changed post trauma?

For now, a working definition of "shocking" will be: any type of visual media that renders the viewer in a state of anxiety.

 

[jenh]

I'm focusing on the intrusive nature of television commercials. When you watch TV, how often are you taken aback by something you see, involuntarily?

 

[NarcSis]

Daily. Several times a day at the outset, currently, not to such a large extent - the world won't change to make me comfortable, but I can avoid if it gets too much.

 

[reallydown]

I can't fuully answer this because I often have trouble recognizing feelings but I do often get triggered by violent content on tv, in movies...in the news etc. So, essentially, since it still strongly affects me, I try to avoid watching the news etc. even though it's often difficult because of the oversaturation of the glorification of violence...whether in propaganda meant to drum up support for war or in the shape of ads for mindless video games etc. Hope that helps.

 

[This Ends Now]

jenh,

Great topic to write a paper on.

Yes the media bothers me. I am under doctors orders to avoid the news. I also cannot stand recruitment ads for military and police service. I was abused by vets and a police officer for many years and it not only brings up memories but it gets me thinking about all the teenagers who are being suggestively sold on some very serious commitments without being warned on the risks involved. I do not have cable TV in my home right now so that is some protection but just about every web site has pop ups and banners and commercials. The Halo3 commercial bothers me b/c I know the military is just using games like that to condition kids into violent mentalities.

My roommates have huge DVD collections and it is hard to walk away when they put something triggering on in the living room.

I would like to share a story about when a group of my friends bought the first several seasons of the show "24" which advocates violence and torture and abuse of power. About 10 people were in this group that decided to watch this garbage back to back for about a week... so I took the opportunity to watch the reactions of the viewers. Normally this is a peace loving non violent liberal hippie group of people. In season one my friends would turn their heads, cringe, or criticize the actions of Jack Bower (the main character who uses progressively brutal tactics as the seasons progress). By season four these same people would cheer and laugh at people being graphically tortured on screen. I was shocked at how quickly and dramatically my friends changed. Feel free to use this story or better yet conduct a similar experiment and document the results. I would be very interested to see what you come up with for your paper if you feel like sharing it.

Best wishes,

Liz H.

 

[clare]

Hi jen,

I responded to your intro thread. Additionally I want to add desensitization like This Ends Now mentioned can be a problem for PTSD sufferers. While violent and sexually demeaning media becomes more popular, those people more sensitive to it and who find it offensive are often marginalized or criticized.

 

[anni]

HI Jen,
I'm not sure if your question is solely about violence being a trigger or if anything related to our individual PTSD being focused on in the media can be a trigger. I tend to have both, although sometimes I don't recognize I've been exposed to a trigger until a behaviour kicks up seemingly 'out of the blue' and I have to hit re-wind in my head to see what the heck happened.
Domestic violence, anything to do with courts, the law, etc., child abductions, all trigger so I have a ton of them on TV. My PTSD developed because I was married to a very wealthy abuser who had a distinct advantage in the court sytsem due to his wealth and position and for awhile I found no protection anywhere, even after my child had been in a kidnapping situation. I'd been beaten, poisoned and threatened and stalked and the trip through the criminal justice syatem was abysmal until I found a fearless lawyer and a town with a police force who were unimpressed by wealth and position.
Sorry for the long answer. :) If you're writing a paper no doubt some background is handy for your stats. My triggers cover alot of ground all through the media. I'd like to add that the mindless violence in movies now worries the heck out of me! I really feel that a steady diet of this dreck does desensitize people in general to violence and it's implications in the REAL world. Enough already!
Take care!

 

[Mina]

When you watch TV, how often are you taken aback by something you see, involuntarily?

Frequently. We don't have television in our home, in part because I don't like it at all. For me, it's not just what I see, but what I hear. The auditory component is enough to set me off, far more than the visual alone would do. A few weeks ago we were on vacation, staying in a hotel. My husband took the opportunity of having TV to watch it. I didn't like the idea, but tried to indulge him since it's something we don't have at home. I found I was consistently agitated when I tried to watch (didn't seem to matter the program), but just as much so when I didn't look and only listened. I fell asleep to a History Channel program, and had horrible nightmares like I haven't for some time. He woke me for dinner by sitting on the edge of the bed and touching my ankle...and wow, was he shocked at my physical startle reaction!!

At least now he believes me that having TV on around me is a bad thing.

We had a long discussion about it. Personally, I find TV (especially today) extremely manipulative, and that really, really bothers me. Much of it is designed to tap into our survival mechanism...especially news commercials like, "3 things you MUST know to keep yourself safe, tonight at 10." The serious or ominous background music, the tone of voice used...it is all designed to alarm us and get us to watch. I watch product commercials, and I'm just repelled by the stupidity of them and how they are so clearly trying so desperately to make you want the product, although many of them have strayed far from the actual product and its purpose in an attempt to entertain and hold one's attention (e.g. I think, "Wtf does this have to do with a cell phone?"). Everything is designed to evoke an emotional reaction of some sort in the viewer. This is manipulative. I also think I notice these things much more than the average viewer (husband agreed). Even on a documentary program, nowadays there are re-enactments, dramatizations, major use of mood music and lighting...I am absolutely disgusted by how far it's gone to suck in "victims" watching or listening to the programs.

Maybe some people like this, but I don't. Although I recognize them, I think I'm particularly susceptible to the media's ploys, which is part of my dislike. Since I was a child, I have always been sensitive to shock or horror-type media...never have been able to watch or listen to it. Around Halloween in elementary school the music teacher would play "Chillers" on her record player (I still remember that album cover) - basically ghost or horror genre stories. They affected me badly enough that each year, my mother had me pulled out of music class until Halloween was over.

Post-trauma, this has all only gotten worse. I am very careful about what I watch...even things I used to like can upset me now because of the traumatic components I pick up on, which I never noticed before.

Great question, JenH.

 

[littleb]

I have that reaction also, now, but for a long time I had an opposite reaction to it. For a while I seemed to have an almost sick infatuation with watching horror gore and films about or involving sexual abuse. I would watch particularly horror and serial killer documentaries like it was the only thing TO watch. What gets me, is that its not that I wanted to watch it, I can remember sitting through it and being disgusted by it, it made me feel horrible during the film and for a long time, if not all day after the film, but I was still compelled to watch it. If I saw it on TV or in the movie store, I made sure we got it, even though it made me feel horrible. It was like I did it against my own will. Maybe it was just my mind trying to tell me that I had issues with it, I dont know, I was in some serious denial back then.

I also get triggered by good-old-family films though too including disney films where a parent is too distant or mean or too protective/loving. It either reminds me of my abuse, or it reminds me of how different I felt I was or that my family was, again reminding me of the abuse. I pretty much just dont watch anything anymore, well, other than discovery channel, but I've never seen anything on there that's upset me.

My fiancee does cater to me, when he can, he used to watch the Steve Wilkos show, and every time I'd end up curled up in a ball on the corner of the couch, feeling like someone was tearing through my stomach. That was before I really came to find out that I had PTSD, or that I had a problem at all. Guess I probably should have known, but I was in denial, so again, I don't know how to explain my not knowing, I'd always been that way. When I was a kid I would ball my eyes out watching the land before time (orig) because the mom dinosuar died in the film, so I guess I was just used to being upset by triggers. (my dad threatened to kill my mom several times when i was young, thats why and how that was a trigger for me as a kid)

Im also with Mina in that I too get triggered by the auditory component of tv. So radio gets to me too. Certain songs, and noises. Loud noises of any type really. Pretty much, any media type upsets me.

 

[This Ends Now]

A Couple More Notes On The Topic

Winnie the Pooh used to be my favorite show. That was until the "Too Smart for Strangers" video came out. My mother made me watch it over and over again thinking it would keep me safe. I had to watch it every other week end before I went to see my father for visitation. Before the video I was already afraid for my life every time I went to see him and the video just reinforced my worst fears.

The 700 club is another trigger for me and I avoid it like the plague. My mother used to make me watch it to keep me safe from evil. That show is filled with end of the world, government is out to get you, conspiracy theory nonsense. I used to have some pretty drastic nightmares and wake up to see that my mom had turned that show on in my room while I was sleeping. Again this is an example of fear being used to "keep us safe".

Fear sells so I do not have much hope of this stopping in our media. In my observations it makes normal people paranoid and traumatized people flip out.

Mina made a great point about the level of manipulation used in today's media. Fox news is a big example of that. I used to work in a diner that played Fox news all night long and it was a huge trigger for me. Anger is what I felt most of the time. Anger and disgust. I tried to keep myself sane by playing "count the spin" when particularly offensive shows came on (O'Rilley, Hannady and Comes, the News, etc.) I would count the number of times they used a manipulative technique (too many to name) and recognize (or point out to another viewer) what was being done and why. Sometimes I would get a co-worker to play with me and see how many manipulative tricks we could each spot.

Good luck on you paper,

Liz H.

 

[jenh]

Hi Liz H,

Thank you so much for your reply - it really helps!! Im working away on some notes now, but i wanted to take a minute to thank you personally...

 

[jenh]

I wanted to thank everyone sincerely for such personalized posts. This will help my paper tremendously! Im very excited about the number of responses, please feel free to continue posting thoughts and stories.
I'm doing a lot of research and trying to find some parallels. It really helps when you agree or disagree with previous posts.

Another question for thought:

Are there particular media forms that seem to bother you more than others? (tv shows, commercials, books, internet, movies)
And additionally, are there places where you see them most often (i.e. public transit stations, free magazines, tv in your own home, etc.)

thank you all so much.. this forum has been so helpful in so many ways.