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Have you experienced PTSD from medical trauma?
Hey everyone!
Check out Lara’s latest column here. Lara examines the link between medical trauma and PTSD, and how CFers experience PTSD.
Have you experienced PTSD from medical trauma? Have you sought out counseling or other mental health resources for support?
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8 Replies
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I definitely have a form of PTSD (undiagnosed as of yet) from when I had a sepsis attack five years ago and experienced a rather painful hospital stay. I’m in therapy now and hopefully can/will get some diagnosis.
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I hear you William. I am in the PTSD camp too…
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My wife definitely has – from some hospitalizations that did not go well. And COVID did not help. She was helped revently by a good talk with the Psychologist on the CF team at the Alfred.
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What is the Alfred if you don’t mind me asking?
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In Melbourne or Sydney?
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I’ve been sick for 3.5 years following a routine endoscopic sinus surgery and can’t get a diagnosis, so I don’t have a solid treatment plan. At times it’s wreaked havoc with my mental wellbeing.
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I’ve had numerous pancreatic attacks due to a rare CF gene mutation I suffer from. Starting at 18 (I’m 50 now), I had attacks frequently and was in the hospital numerous times. It got so bad that we ended up at Mayo which did nothing to help my condition.
During this period, I started developing PTSD from my experiences. I quickly decided to see a doctor to try to cope with the rapid onset of negative emotions attached to my illness. Getting diagnosed with PTSD was relatively easy considering the trauma I had been through.
I started talk therapy and something called EMDR (eye movement desensitization redirection). Combined with psych meds, slowly but surely I faced my demons and started seeing relief. The key was identifying the causes of my symptoms and getting a psychologist comfortable with tackling my specific challenges.
Life with PTSD sucks, but it can be manageable and you can see symptoms start to alleviate themselves with a combined therapy.
Don’t be afraid to look for doctors that deal specifically with trauma and PTSD. CF patients suffer and go through a lot of these battles alone, so it is important to have a support system in place so when your PTSD rears its head, you’ll have tools to tackle the challenges you are facing.
There is hope. Doctors are often empathetic to CF patients and are willing to accommodate them when it comes to a PTSD diagnosis because this is a lifelong disease that attacks our bodies at any time, without warning. This in and of itself is traumatic and something you have to make peace with if you want to keep on trucking.
If you’re suffering from fears of procedures, hospitalizations, and even needles (my personal enemy), please consider talking to a psychologist and getting the assistance you need. I didn’t know I had PTSD until I was at a lecture on PTSD and while going over symptoms with the doctor, I realized I suffered from almost all of them. That realization opened the door to taking steps to heal.
Fighting CF is a huge undertaking. You are not alone and you can find light at the end of the tunnel. I thought my life was going to be complete suffering, but once I got a different perspective and the tools to handle a crisis, I found relief from the constant battles in my head over my condition and the suffering that comes with it.
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The Alfred Hospital is a large hospital in Melbourne Australia which hosts one of the 2 Adult CF Centres in Victoria, Australia. The other is at Monash Hospital. Children are seen at Monash and also The Children’s Hospital in Flemington. Ali 4 are excellent centres. All do have a psychiatrist on staff.
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