Sheepdog Tip of the Day, After Combat tip 58
You cannot pretend that the incident did not happen. You cannot refuse to let anyone talk about it and you cannot refuse to ever talk about it. That would be a pathology. After a year has passed you should not still be weepy, angry or emotional every time you are reminded of the event. Do not fool yourself into believing that it is okay to get angry because that is the same as getting weepy. Both are uncontrolled manifestations of the puppy, or the sympathetic nervous system. Likewise, fleeing from the memory is unhealthy, as it will only drive you down the path of PTSD. Your healthy, long-term survival requires that you do the same as a grieving widow, and make peace with the memory.
Lt. Col. Dave Grossman, On Combat
Sheepdog Tip of the Day services:
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Other killology services:
Bullet Proof Mind for the Armed Citizen Seminar
The Killology web site
Additional Resources
For PTSD, Shepherd Resource Group.