I don't think PTSD is ever "minor" but I do think there are degrees of impairment when it comes to functionality; for instance, there are people who can't work because of their PTSD, and you and I both hold down jobs. That's what I meant by "low-level"; not that it isn't a completely serious mental illness, but rather that there are people who can function in the working world and manage their lives despite the impairments, and there are also people who can't.
'Suffice it to say, it's an "It wasn't that bad... but I know you're not supposed to compare and contrast your experience with that of more-traumatized friends... but no really, it wasn't that bad... but why do I feel like I have to minimize it?" sort of thing. Which I gather is fairly common.'
That's more or less exactly how I feel about mine. It doesn't seem nearly as terrible as things that have happened to other people I care about (even though some of those folks are more functional and less obviously damaged than I am, in some cases), and I want to minimise it, but when I see things on TV that look normal to me, other people are pretty horrified sometimes, and I have at least one friend who can't read some of the fiction I write because the family dynamics I write between people who like each other much better than my family does upset her too much!
I've done a lot of thinking about why I want to minimise things and not admit that I am still suffering from injuries that were done me by people who certainly don't think about me very much any more, and I've come to the conclusion that for me, at least, it's a way my mind has of protecting me from feeling how terrifyingly powerless I've been and could be again, so that I don't sit there wibbling about it but rather take the actions I need to take to prevent it, even if I do reload Dreamwidth 18 times when I feel freaked out by choices I have to make or things people said to me.
That may or may not be helpful for you but it's something to think about?
And thanks for your reply--I know it can take a while to formulate a reply to something like this from a near stranger, but at the same time, I was a little worried that I'd offended you!
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Date: 2012-05-24 07:14 pm (UTC)'Suffice it to say, it's an "It wasn't that bad... but I know you're not supposed to compare and contrast your experience with that of more-traumatized friends... but no really, it wasn't that bad... but why do I feel like I have to minimize it?" sort of thing. Which I gather is fairly common.'
That's more or less exactly how I feel about mine. It doesn't seem nearly as terrible as things that have happened to other people I care about (even though some of those folks are more functional and less obviously damaged than I am, in some cases), and I want to minimise it, but when I see things on TV that look normal to me, other people are pretty horrified sometimes, and I have at least one friend who can't read some of the fiction I write because the family dynamics I write between people who like each other much better than my family does upset her too much!
I've done a lot of thinking about why I want to minimise things and not admit that I am still suffering from injuries that were done me by people who certainly don't think about me very much any more, and I've come to the conclusion that for me, at least, it's a way my mind has of protecting me from feeling how terrifyingly powerless I've been and could be again, so that I don't sit there wibbling about it but rather take the actions I need to take to prevent it, even if I do reload Dreamwidth 18 times when I feel freaked out by choices I have to make or things people said to me.
That may or may not be helpful for you but it's something to think about?
And thanks for your reply--I know it can take a while to formulate a reply to something like this from a near stranger, but at the same time, I was a little worried that I'd offended you!