Mowtown, I am sorry that you have talked to friends and family members that "don't get it". That doesn't mean you are wrong, or that this challenge isn't "real" to you either. Most people can relate to the challenge you are having in their own way.

In my own experience with developing PTSD, I have been a very "misunderstood" person not only by friends and family members, but a few professionals along the way as well. When it comes to stigmatizing? Well, there is certainly an abundance of that in human beings. No matter what someone is, there is a stigma for it, be it ones' religious orientation, color, class, culture, political orientation, occupation, where they reside etc.

The person that needs to really make the decision or find a balance however, is "you". And that means not stigmatizing "self". The main challenge with you on this right now that you have reached out for here, is help so you can find your way to that sense of personal balance instead of the self stigmatizing that is actually quite common with PTSD sufferers, I hear you because I have had that deep challenge myself as well, however, I have also noticed how others are challenged with that as well.

For myself, I can only say that as a person who struggles with PTSD, I have graveled with that on many levels. There had been a lot of things that were important to me, things I valued in my life that others did not share in. I actually learned that in a big way when I experienced the stress breakdown that turned out to be labeled "post traumatic stress". I expressed all the red flags that meant "trauma patient", yet what got in the way the most is other people's opinions about the "value" of what I had lost that traumatized me. I was misdiagnosed because of that "fact". It never occured to me that I should have presented proof either. Unfortunately, that is how people are, unless they are personally involved with something, they don't recognize the significance of it. Also what surprised me the most is how quickly I was misjudged. I have had to work on this with my Therapist who, thankfully has reviewed my records after taking time to know me and recognized that yes, it was wrong how I was judged so quickly based on how little these professionals knew about me as well as what I valued.

Mowtown, you talked about this community being so understanding and helpful to you, many have talked about that, do you know why that is so? While others may not struggle with PTSD, they do know "struggle" and in that alone they are more "receptive" and "understanding".

You also need to consider the statistics of people that struggle in some way too. The truth is, the overall percentage of individuals that have some kind of Mental Health Challenge is very "high". That is the "true Reality" in human beings. I tell people to go to some busy mall somewhere and just "sit" and people watch for a while. It becomes very obvious how unique we all are, so in that alone, others have different ways their brains are unique too. The true "normal" is to be "unique" in some way. The true insanity is assuming there is a "normal" that means anything "different". For myself? I live with a husband who has a brain with two learning challenges ADHD and Dyslexia and I have a daughter that has dyslexia they have their own unique challenges, they don't view things the way I do. Well, they are just unique individuals in a way science has finally identified. I have been learning about how their brains are different, but I am not going to really know because I don't have these challenges myself. In turn, they know I have PTSD, but they are not going to really know what that means unless they experience it first hand. Stigma really means "I don't "know" what that is so I decided it is "bad".

You can decide to embrace the "unknowing" of stigmatizm, or you can choose to become a "humanist" instead and realize the truth is, "we are all unique" and in that can be quite interesting too. It would really reduce your PTSD symptoms too, if you keep working towards finally embracing not "self stigmatizing" and instead work on growing and learning in spite of your challenge with it. In saying this Mowtown, I know that takes time and I know you have been trying.

I remember when I was struggling really bad with trying to explain my challenge. Someone said to me "People don't know, nor do they care to know". Well, that is true for a lot of people, but not all people, otherwise we would not have gained the knowledge we now have about how people "are" challenged in different ways. I think it is wise to think about being one of those people instead who "choose to want to know and understand", those are the ones worth knowing and embracing.