Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Support Group
Find support with others who have gone through a traumatic experience. Whether you have chronic or acute PTSD, we are here for you.
Im finally getting off of my medication, and its difficult. I was told its normal to be more jumpy, agitated, etc. But today was so uterly embarassing.
I was walking back to campus with my friend. We had to stop at a store. It was dark out, and on our way back, he swung his plastic bag when i wasnt expecting it. He bag made a whooshing noise and i saw it from the corner of my eye. It wasnt coming at me and he wasnt trying to hit me. But i literally screamed, ducked, and covered. He knows i have ptsd and apologized and I moved on and was pretty much okay once i breathed a bit.
Regardless... im feeling overwhelmed. Im worried my friends are sick of me, im scared that the agitation and extra jumpiness wont wear off even after im done tapering my medication, and im scared I'll embarass myself even more.
im thankful to have an understanding, graceful friend. Im hoping i wont screw up any of my current friendships during this process of adjustment.
I was walking back to campus with my friend. We had to stop at a store. It was dark out, and on our way back, he swung his plastic bag when i wasnt expecting it. He bag made a whooshing noise and i saw it from the corner of my eye. It wasnt coming at me and he wasnt trying to hit me. But i literally screamed, ducked, and covered. He knows i have ptsd and apologized and I moved on and was pretty much okay once i breathed a bit.
Regardless... im feeling overwhelmed. Im worried my friends are sick of me, im scared that the agitation and extra jumpiness wont wear off even after im done tapering my medication, and im scared I'll embarass myself even more.
im thankful to have an understanding, graceful friend. Im hoping i wont screw up any of my current friendships during this process of adjustment.
Are you going off meds with a doctor's supervision? That's how I did it. It really made a difference to taper with medical advice along the way. I had to do it because I got kidney disease and meds affect kidneys. It was scary, but I substituted DS PTSD here with for pills and have been ok for 4 years now.
As Muji said, are you under a doctor's supervision? If so, discuss the concerns---they may change the schedule for switching you off, etc., to give you a longer adjustment period.
I am so glad for you that you are going to be off meds:-) It's a goal of mine for my recovery. Hang in there, and it's okay to have the startle response. You should've seen me *on meds* when my one neighbor decided to kill a foot-long snake with a freaking huge gun. Walking along, la la la, and I all but dove into the nearest bushes. (I ran into my hubby on the way, or I'd have been kissing the azaleas.) It's okay, it really is.