[dawnhopeful]

I am tired during the day. This could be as a result of not sleeping properly at night. After immigrating to a new country, I started to have insomnia. I am not sure if this was as a result of depression or PTSD. You see, our house was broken into and burnt down, while we were on a vacation. Is it true that one cannot have PTSD unless one has flashbacks? Therefore, because I dont have flashbacks, I dont have PTSD, but have a MDD, or major depressive disorder, (which started ages ago, when I was a teenager?)
I am so confused about this whole classification of mental diseases 'thing'

[reader1587]

Originally Posted by dawnhopeful

I am tired during the day. This could be as a result of not sleeping properly at night. After immigrating to a new country, I started to have insomnia. I am not sure if this was as a result of depression or PTSD. You see, our house was broken into and burnt down, while we were on a vacation. Is it true that one cannot have PTSD unless one has flashbacks? Therefore, because I dont have flashbacks, I dont have PTSD, but have a MDD, or major depressive disorder, (which started ages ago, when I was a teenager?)
I am so confused about this whole classification of mental diseases 'thing'

Hi

I think with most mental disorders (if not all) there are a list of symptoms, if you have a certain number of them you "qualify" for the diagnosis...but you do not need to have all of them, so you could very well have "enough" symptoms to qualify for PTSD, but not necessarily flashbacks, or hypervigilance, or whatever.

I wouldn't get too hung up on the diagnostic system since (in my experience) the more you learn about it the less valid it becomes for you, but I understand the (sometimes powerful) need to be able to define what's going on for you. I have similar problems with sleep, I would recommend doing whatever you have to (getting a new bed, curtains, changing your sleep schedule, etc., but not taking pills or using alcohol).