Post Traumatic Stress Support Group

Hello everyone my name is Scott. Im 42 years old and have a survivor of cancer in my family. My Father whom i love very much. He is 76 your old and in 2007 was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer of the esophagus which is 95% fatal. Hearing that a loved one a friend even a close neighbor having cancer is never easy. Not only is it hard on the individual but its hard on the family as well. My father went through five major surgerys. Im very happy to say that my father is alive and kicking. I have been through alot in my life. I am a survivor of an abduction and sexual abuse at the age of twelve. ( July 2 1979 ). In the year 2000 i was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism and had a cancer scare the following year. And then the hard news about my father. My father and my family was always there for me when ever i needed them most for support. I am here to give you all that same support that we all so desperately need. I will guide you all through the difficult time ahead and lend you my shoulder if you ever need one. I look forward to getting to know all of you.

Scott

Hi there! I am excited to meet all of you and welcome everyone's stories! A little background on myself is that I was raped my senior year of high school, and then almost immediately after , I entered a pretty abuse relationship. I have had PTSD for years but it was dormant during my rough period. I like to say it was dormant because to me, I still was in survival mode for a very good reason. I have been in therapy now for almost a year and a half and have come along way since then. I still struggle with dissociation and anxiety but I have learned to control it better. I would love to help all of you in your struggles with this disorder and hopefully give you all a little ray of hope or some sunshine to your day.

I was diagnosed with PTSD in 02/06 when I entered counseling to learn to deal with the deaths of my mother and my husband less than 6 months apart in 2005. In 10/04, I found out that my mother was terminal with leukemia and would live less than 1 yr longer. I spent the holidays with her knowing that it would be my last with her which was not at all easy to do. My husband and I were married in 02/05 after having met 3 yrs earlier. In 05/05 my mother lost her battle with cancer. In 10/05, upon arriving home from work, I found my husband of almost 8 months dead on our living room couch from a heart attack. For the next few weeks I tried denying that anything was wrong and that I was fine. It was not until I started hallucinating, having nightmares, becoming afraid to leave my home, etc. that I realized I had a problem. I entered therapy in 02/06 and was immediately diagnosed with PTSD. I spent 3 years in counseling learning to deal with the PTSD and trying to find a new "normal" life. During that time, I did extensive research on PTSD and realized just how much it is misunderstood. I had been in therapy some 25 years earlier after being beaten, raped, and the same man tried to kill me because I divorced him over the beating and the rape. I was never diagnosed with PTSD although I realize now that I have the same symptoms from that experience as I do from having found my husband dead. I joined this group to do my very best to provide the support and understanding other members need that I also need from them. MDJ has been a big part of my life and I hope I can help each and every member of this group in some small way.