For Partners & Loved Ones

Welcome!

If you’re a partner or loved one of someone who has PTSD, here’s a shortcut to some of the posts on Coming Back Home that were written specifically to address questions asked by partners and family members.

Note: most of these posts were written as responses to questions asked by a group of female spouses of male RCMP officers who have PTSD. I know that not all spouses are female, and not all people with PTSD are male…This blog used to have a small audience, and some of these posts were geared toward that original audience. It is not my intention to make anyone feel invisible. Whenever possible, I try to keep my posts as genderless and inclusive as I can.

Will my partner always have PTSD?

Why isn’t my partner’s medication helping?

Where does my partner’s anger come from? You can read another article on anger here.

What should I do when my partner pulls away from me emotionally? You can read more about why people tend to pull away here. A related topic, why it’s so hard for a person with PTSD to tell you what’s bothering them, is discussed here.

My partner doesn’t want to tell anyone about his PTSD; how should I handle that?

How can I tell the difference between PTSD and depression? If you would like more information about depression, you might find it helpful to read this, this, and this.

What are the physical symptoms that often go along with PTSD?

Is sexual dysfunction related to PTSD, too?

I’ve got a couple of posts on panic, here and here.

If there are any other posts on this blog that you think need to be added to this list – please let me know, and I’ll be happy to add a link.

Please feel free to share this post, and any other on this blog, with anyone who might benefit.

MCC5

I’d love to have you share your thoughts, comments, and questions. If you do post a comment, please don’t give specific details of your trauma – these may be triggering to another reader. If you’d like to offer criticism, I’ll take it – I know I’m not perfect, and I’m always willing to learn. If you do offer criticism though, I’d really appreciate it if you could do so constructively (ie., no name-calling, please). Thanks…

You can find me on Twitter and on Facebook.

~ Dr. Dee Rajska, C. Psych.

*Fine print: Please feel free to share the link to this blog wherever you think it might be helpful! Reading this blog is a good start, but it’s no substitute for professional help. It takes a different kind of courage to admit to yourself that you’re struggling. PTSD is not a sign of failure – it’s a sign that you’ve been through a lot, and have tried to stay strong for too long. If you need help – you’re in some pretty great company. Reach out, and give yourself a chance to feel better.

**Really fine print: The content of Coming Back Home is copyrighted; please feel free to share the link, but do not copy and paste content. Unless otherwise noted, all original photography on Coming Back Home is copyrighted. The photo gracing today’s post was taken by M. & C. Charbonneau, and I’d like to thank them for generously allowing me to use their work. Please do not copy photographs from Coming Back Home without permission.

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One thought on “For Partners & Loved Ones

  1. Thanks for these links, Dee. It helps just knowing that the behaviors I see are common in PTSD. My situation is a bit different in that I’m dating a 1st responder with PTSD. On one hand, I consider myself fortunate than most spouses because I don’t have to deal with the grief of the loss of the person they once were – the person one fell in love with – I only know him as he is right now. However, the flip side of that is having to rely solely on my instincts as to how I approach him (or not). Emotional avoidance and the inability to talk about his feelings makes it extremely difficult to get close to him. He expresses himself differently than anyone I’ve ever known – almost as if he’s very objectively describing how he feels for me. The dating ‘norms’ certainly get thrown out the window and I have to remember to check my ego when I’m hurt that he doesn’t respond the way I think he should, or contact me as much as I’d like.
    When I describe it to anyone who asks, I liken it to someone who loves puppies and desperately wants to hold and pet one. Except my man’s wearing work gloves that won’t come off – so he doesn’t feel the same joy that most of us would when playing with a puppy. Sounds a bit silly, I know – but that’s how I see it.

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