This morning we are continuing our
Monitoring Men's Health segment with
another very serious topic,
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
June is PTSD awareness.
So this morning we want to share ways
of how you can live with it or if
you're dealing with someone who has
it. Yeah, we know many veterans have PTSD,
but it also goes beyond that.
Anything traumatic in your life,
even a divorce, can trigger it.
And I sat down with Washington
University professor,
a doctorate. Roomy price.
You begin to avoid things.
For example, July 4th is coming up,
but you can't stand the
smell of the beef, right?
Because you had the same smell or even
the sound of the fireworks, Right?
Right. Those things trigger.
So you know I'm not going. Yeah.
So you started avoiding people.
You started avoiding social activities.
Now, there are some signs that
you should be looking out for
nightmares you can't sleep,
flashbacks or some unpleasant
memories that would be PTSD. Yeah,
and a lot of panic attacks actually
come from an actual physical issue,
like an increased heart rate or sweating.
Before going to see a doctor and
taking medication, there are some other
methods you may want to try first.
Better things are actually around you,
like a deep breathing relaxation,
and those are free.
And you don't have to put anything
in your mouth. So I would,
I would suggest those methods first.
And stop drinking. You can call
988 to talk to a trained
crisis counselor too.
Yeah. And she talked about
those things that are free,
you know, deep breathe and kind
of changing your environment.
A lot of times the PTSD is triggered
by something like a trauma. Right.
And so whenever like we've half,
4th of July coming up,
you think about the fireworks allowed.
Boom. A lot of veterans can relate to that,
but even you know.
Regular old person that didn't go to war.
It can suffer from those things too.
Like maybe something happened
to you when you were a child.
Or like we mentioned earlier, a divorce.
She mentioned also stop drinking.
That was something she
said and she talked about
how that's a coping strategy.
A lot of times you go have a drink to escape.
Well, what are you escaping?
What are you trying to get away from?
And is it that feeling of trauma?
Did you go through something that's
causing you to drink heavily?
And of course, as it goes on,
she mentioned a lot of
times people have alcohol.
They don't just develop that overnight.
That's 30 and 40 years of a
lifetime of drinking and then your
liver at that point is just shot.
It's it's it's a build up overtime and
you know one of the things that that.
People need to do is truly
consider talking to somebody.
Yeah, about these situations.
Let it out because then you'd be able to
identify what is leading to your PJ. And
that's why we created this
segment to begin with, you know,
to have men sit down and talk
about it because she said a
lot of men just hold it in.
That's what she sees.
Whereas women will get together.
They have social groups and men
kind of view this as a weakness.
They have this.
Masculinity, maturism.
And they don't want to talk
about their weaknesses.
They see psychiatric
symptoms as weaknesses.
But that's so true. We're taught
at an early age as boys be tough.
Tough, tough it out.
Don't cry, don't cry. Don't do that.
And so you're never quite able
to express your emotions.
Yeah. Understand your emotions.
And so I think she's.
Hitting the nail on the head there,
we're talking about.
It's OK. Yeah, it's OK.
It's OK not to be OK Yeah.
And even with
my kids, you know,
I try to encourage them. You know,
if they're upset about something,
it's OK to be upset right now.
But you move on.
And that's with PTSD.
You can't move on.
And that's when she said
there's help available.
And it is interesting to think that.
When you say PTSD,
the first thing people think of,
oh, I didn't go to war.
No, It's traumatic things that have happened
in your life and it could be a car accident,
it could be losing a loved one.
So many things can trigger back
to those points.
You start thinking, oh,
that's why I get so upset this time of year,
especially around the holidays.
Have a hard time around the holidays too.
Now there is help available.
If you have had a traumatic life event,
reach out to a healthcare professional.
Take the time to take care of yourself.
That is so important.
It is so important because you can't
be the best you if you're trying
to take care of everybody else
and not taking care of yourself.
So take the time to listen to your body.
If you feel anxious,
if you feel you know that PTSD
is coming on in some sort of
some sort of physical trait,
that's when you really want to reach out.
If it's holding you back
from living your life,
reach out, and it may not be.
You know, if you're looking at
dates and events and all that,
it may not be the day of.
It could be the days leading up to where
you start to feel a little anxiety.
Anything you smell or hear your senses,
you know, that triggers it. Good
conversation. Thank you.
Stay with us out today and say
Louis at 6:00 AM starts right now.