So I have severe Generalized Anxiety Disorder and I’ve read a few stories where a character had it and they were completely off. For me whenever someone says something that comes off rude I have a few different reactions. The mainly one is legit cry and go into a panic attack. Panic attacks are as frequent as people claim they are to be. Also with this disorder you can still do normal things and at times its invisible in you life. I also tend to fidget alot and shake my feet as something to do. Its sorta like when your itchy and you need to scratch but you need to move and fidget so you resort to something like playing with random stuff or constantly moving you Feet. GAD is different for almost everyone so if you do use it in a story research lots.
Correction
So if you want to have a story and mention that someone is Mormon or is from the Mormon or LDS church you are referring to followers of Mormon. I’m apart of The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and we are followers of Christ not Mormon. Also dont refer to us of the lds church. Even if it is in our church’s name it is not the correct name to call us. So yeah…
PTSD
So for PTSD it’s not always caused by abuse, war, etc; It can be caused by being hit by a car and having the lady who hit you yell at you even though you had the right of way and have the lady yell at you to talk to your parents. That happened to me and it is a small contributing factor to my undiagnosed, but probably will be in a week or so, PTSD. Have some different traumatizing event that caused it that isnt actually what everyone says is what causes PTSD
Some insight into mental illnesses that I suffer from.
Autism
Not all autistic people act like children, not all of us are “retarded”. There is a spectrum, and many different types of autism. I suffer from autism spectrum disorder. Yeah, autism is a learning disability, but most people can actually live a pretty good life with it, as long as they can manage it.
Generalised Anxiety Disorder
There are many different types of anxiety. Something that I specifically suffer from is generalised anxiety disorder. I also have social anxiety as well, but not as severe. Sometimes panic attacks are a part of anxiety. This disorder makes me quite fidgety as well, along with my autism.
Depression
A tough topic. Depression is not being sad, or wanting to die. It’s not wearing all black or being emo. So many people glamourise and romanticise depression, and that’s not ok at all. I have depression, which was a result of dysthymia, prolonged periods of sadness. And I can tell you, it’s not easy. You put on a mask and act happy while you’re hurting inside. Some days, you don’t wanna go to school or work or outside because you feel worthless. You feel empty, and numb, and just… Being depressed is a storm. Constantly raining while the sky is dark. It doesn’t look good. It feeds you lies and tries to take over you. You can’t seem to find anything or anyone to help you. Then the suicidal thoughts come in. Sometimes they go away, sometimes they stay. Talk to someone when you have these thoughts, because depression is not a battle you can fight alone. Talking can save your life. And your mind.
PTSD
This is post traumatic stress disorder. People living with PTSD don’t think about about their trauma constantly. Many different circumstances or traumatic events can cause PTSD. People with PTSD also have to identify their triggers. And they have to do so, so that they don’t end up having a panic attack, or getting triggered badly. I have PTSD. Now, it’s not complex PTSD. (C-PTSD.) My PTSD was caused by traumatic events in my life. You can PM me for more information. I will say that not only veterans suffer from this.
Body Dysmorphic Disorder
A mental illness that isn’t really discussed much. You hate your body and constantly criticise it, everyday. You avoid mirrors, because when you look into it, all your flaws pop out. Body dysmorphia has basically screwed up my self-esteem beyond repair. It is the gateway to my eating disorder and makes me even more insecure. I do point out my flaws, a lot. It’s very hard to live with…
Anorexia Nervosa (TW)
Something that I’m trying hard to recover from. I don’t like my body. And yes, because of this, I use unhealthy ways to look perfect. Please represent this issue correctly. Because, just like all the other mental illnesses I listed before, it’s difficult to recover from. Before, it was bad. I skipped meals, barely ate, felt cold and hungry, lied a lot… It wasn’t until I nearly passed out that I realised, This is bad, very bad. You’re only screwing yourself up even more. So I’m trying to get my eating pattern back to normal. I’m still in recovery, so, sometimes I may relapse. Again, it’s difficult, but society holds such a high standard for females in the U.S. (and sometimes internationally too) that sometimes I look at myself and go, “Damn. What’s wrong with me? Why am I not perfect? Why don’t I look perfect?” But we also realise that each and every one of us are beautiful, no matter your color, gender, sexuality, or size. We are humans and God’s creation, so we are beautiful.
I agree with you, especially regarding PTSD. ANY event that traumatizes someone and effects their mental health and/or their ability to function in his or her everyday life is worthy of being diagnosed with PTSD. I’m an EMT and often my co workers falsely believe what happened to them is not “bad enough” to be considered PTSD, since they may have only treated horrific accidents, not been in the accident them self. But that does not matter.