Scared for the future.

[Peter775]

Hi all

I wanna thank everyone that responds to this message in advance. I need advice , I apologise in advance to
anyone if my story and circumstances are not as bad as yours I just want help, insight and understanding.

7 days ago in short summary the person living in the apartment next door was found dead.  I did think what if that man is dead and i was denial hoping that maybe he was with hes family for christmas or fine. I had heard and seen things I wish I hadn't when the forensics team arrived. He was a drug addict, i saw this coming as a he was lonely old man who would tolerate listening to for 30mins avg each time he saw me because he was talented at gossping about other neighbors and hard to understand from been high.

Given he was dead for about 2weeks at most from what police think might of happened. That neighbor later said he was let down I didnt go in with them. Could this be true? Only thing i saw was a strecher the one time i looked out my door. I have plans in place to get help, im going through panic attacks since coming back to my home and pain which seems to have improved from the images in my mind. I want this to go away as fast as possible and dont want it to interfere with my life though I feel with time I will move on from it there is fear I might not. To say i suffer from ptsd makes me feel like its wrong because of others in worse situations then mine. I dont wanna believe it despite proffessionals suggesting it could be so.

A few questions I have is whether this really is a form of ptsd and what are my chances of having it not effect me in the future? And has anyone
gone through something similar and if so how long did it take them to recover? What if I never recover, this scares me dont wanna have my life ruined over this?

[Quercus]

Hi Peter775 and welcome to the forums.

A friend of mine discovered a deceased person working in real estate and was offered counselling via the WA police. A forensic officer sat with her to explain what she witnessed because it was distressing. I wonder if it might be worth contacting the police in your area and asking if any support services are available.

Otherwise your first step could be visiting your GP. There is nothing unusual about feeling distressed by what happened. It is traumatic. Witnesses of road trauma have counselling resources available because the reality is witnessing death or the scene of death is traumatic.

If you want to know more about PTSD and trauma I've read some of the booklets from this website and found them helpful personally. I hope they help you accept how you are feeling and reach out for more support.

www.phoenixaustralia.org

Kind thoughts to you.

Nat

[Croix]

Dear Peter~

I'll start off by saying what you are feeling is the same as many others would, and while I'm not a doctor would guess there might be an element of PTSD in your reactions.

Finding out that someone had passed away in poor circumstances is hard, and there is often a very natural feeling to question if one could have done more - even though it would not have been practical. If you add to that the images you have in your mind both from the forensic team's visit and those that your mind has made up things can be pretty distressing.

Wanting the matter to go away is in fact one of the symptoms of PTSD, I've had similar, also worry about what will happen.

Can I suggest you seek professional help? Getting in early at 2 weeks is good and helpfully a therapist experienced in trauma matters will be able to take through things ot a better state of mind. You could start with your GP and ask abut it.

You are welcome to talk here anytime

Croix

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi Peter775,

Welcome to the forums and thank you for sharing your experiences with us. I'm really sorry that you've had to witness that; it does sound like it was very traumatic and I can understand why you'd be feeling that way.

There's a couple of things I want to clarify.

PTSD doesn't discriminate, in the same way that Depression and Anxiety doesn't discriminate. Things don't have to be 'that bad' for you to get the condition. The idea of PTSD and trauma is that it overwhelms our system, and what overwhelms your system might not overwhelm my system, and vice versa. What I might feel is traumatic you might see as silly - but it doesn't matter in a sense because it's all very real.

A few things you have listed do seem to align with PTSD but that's only for you and the professionals to decide. Here's a bit of information on it if you'd like to have a read - https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/clinical-resources/post-traumatic-stress-disorder/what-is-ptsd

and finally - recovery is kind of unique. With PTSD there is no cure but it's about finding ways to cope with what's happened to the point where it doesn't affect you as much. So if right now you're having lots of flashbacks and panic attacks, the main aim is to reduce them, and then in the future you might barely have them or not have them at all. While thinking about the situation (and probably typing it) might cause a lot of anxiety, the aim is to get to a point where it becomes yet another story and experience that you went through.

Timelines again are a bit tricky and they depend on a few different things; understanding that what you are feeling is PTSD (and deserves that diagnosis) is important, as well as reaching out for the support you need and deserve.

Hope this is helpful,

[Idkme]

Hi Peter,

what a horrible thing to experience. I’m sorry this happened to you. There are lots of excellent responses here... I just want to say you cannot judge how others react to things.... one person gets called a name and they fall to pieces for years and years, others just let it slip. It’s nothing more than the way it interacts with our psyche and that is determined by many things, ie emotions, past experiences, personality, etc. So if it’s had a negative effect on your life then look after yourself.

Looking after yourself is the same as medical injuries.... if I asked you how long it takes for a leg injury to heal you would say ‘it depends on the damage’.... it’s the same.... some take time, some need surgery, some need rest, some need a very long time. I guess it’s up to the medical experts and the resources available.

So be kind to yourself, there is no reason why this ‘should’ affect you in a negative way for life, but it will always be there as a learning experience. Now you just need to heal.... and that depends on what you need to heal.

I hope that makes sense.

[Peter775]

Thank you for all the responses and taking the time to read what i wrote, wish i had worded it better I wasnt in a good state of mind while writing. Its comforting to read that the process im going through is normal because a part of me thought that I was been weak minded about the whole issue. I will also take time to read the links everyone has provided, I understand now that I have to patiently go through this process. I have things in place to help me through this time and hope in the end I can look back on this as a learning experience.

[Idkme]

That’s great news Peter,

its also wonderful to hear back from you. It’s so nice to get updates along the way and to hear if the person who started the thread has received some useful tips.

I genuinely hope your journey is smooth sailing and that you are able to process this experience in a timely comfortable manner.

If you so wish, pop in and give us an update, or throw us a question....

kindest regards,

[sunny]

Hi Peter

I can't imagine what you are going though, but i have friends that suffer ptsd do ok now as they sought some independent help such as a pyschologist or GP and get a second opinion.

I think with time you will improve and settle

if after your diagnosis efforts brings a positive for ptsd you need to find support groups like online and face to face