What is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (My PTSD Battle)

As preppers or as preparedness-minded people, we are readying ourselves for the worst SHTF scenarios.

We pack our bug-out bags, and we stock our pantries. We collect our guns and knives, and first-aid supplies. Some of us exercise so that we can outrun the zombie hordes. We think about how to secure our homes or bug-out locations against marauders to keep us, our family, and our friends safe.

But what are we doing to prepare ourselves for the mental toll these cataclysmic disasters will take on us?

Do we think that surviving is all we will need to do? Do we believe that everything will be roses once we come out on the other side of it? What about others that are going through the disaster along with us? Can you recognize PTSD in them?

In this episode, Brian talks with Dale Goodwin about his long-running battle with PTSD and how he has been able to find a way to live with the injury. He explains that this is an injury, a wound, and not just a mental disorder.

Brian is an advocate for PTSD awareness and shares his knowledge of the "why" many suffer from it.

What is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?

Post-traumatic stress disorder is an injury to the brain caused by experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event.

PTSD is your mind trying to protect you from getting hurt again. Your brain processes experiences and files them away.

If you cannot process that trauma, or if you experience many traumas happening one right after another, it doesn't get filed away. It remains an active memory.

The Biology of it All

PTSD manifests itself in a variety of ways. Some may experience chest pains, others panic attacks, and others may feel completely different.

However, one way to know that you may have PTSD is understanding the "why" it happens.

The Brain Has Two Systems

In the front of your brain, behind your forehead, you'll find the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for rational thought.

The prefrontal cortex also plays a role in engaging the parasympathetic nervous system, which is essential for controlling sympathetic nervous system responses of the amygdala.

At the base of the brain, you will find the limbic system, which is responsible for emotions and memory formation. The limbic system contains the amygdala, which is responsible for detecting fear and engaging the sympathetic nervous system.

And, it's our sympathetic nervous system that is responsible for our freeze, flight, or fight response.

In other words, when we perceive a grave threat, our sympathetic nervous system kicks in as part of our survival instinct. When our sympathetic nervous system kicks in, it works to override our rational thought.

So, when Godzilla turns the corner in front of us, our survival mechanism kicks in instinctually. It doesn't want us to debate whether Godzilla will eat us. It wants us to survive.

So, the sympathetic nervous system shuts down our rational thought and forces us to hide, run, or fight.

The fact is that your emotional brain is designed to shut down the rational part of your brain to protect you from danger.

When danger happens, you don't want your mind to take the time to rationalize what is going on. You want your limbic system to move your feet and get you out of there.

However, the more trauma you experience, the harder it becomes for your rational brain to take over when you're not in danger.

How Post Traumatic Stress Works

Post Traumatic Stress is a result of our mind trying to protect us.

Our subconscious mind protects us by monitoring what's happening around us. Our mind doesn't register time and place. Instead, it registers things it can detect through our senses and associates what it detects with the trau...