Do labels help or hurt those suffering from PTSD?

It depends on the context of how those 4 letters are used

The only Label that defines me is Vet. I don't fit into any other box. Never have, never will.

Colonel Burroughs I am certified disabled because diagnosed PSTD. No Sir, you cannot put a lable on the disorder, as everyone is different. If I remember they have identified 13 symptoms of it, and I have every on of them. The Dr. Showed me this from the official book used for diagnosis. It is truly dehabilitating to suffer. Yes seriously heavily medicated, and it just dull the tip, but each day is challanging one way or another in so many different ways, that I could write a book on it. Over time you become alone in a world that's unexplainable, and few understands. No Sir, no labels unless you have an assortment of labels on a colossal spool, Sir.

PTSD is a serious problem that needs to be addressed, however it is also used by employers as an excuse to not hire a person. Often civilian employers think that all soldiers have PTSD when that isn't the truth even among combat troops whom have been engaged in combat multiple times. My advice is to seek help if you need it and only tell people close to you about it. If you broadcast to the world your problems, particularly PTSD, it will be used to discriminate against you. Additionally, think very carefully about whether or not to include military service on resumes. Don't hid it, but tailor your resume to match the culture of the company you apply to. If they are pro military or the omission of it would leave a huge employment gap in your resume include it.

Labeling is Harmful, to the parties being labeled, because they may use the 'label' to define themselves in their injured state, which may lead to more serious problems; to the labeler, because 'labeling' is a lazy way to classify people & it short-circuits our befriending of the 'labeled' by lumping them into a pre-defined group with pre-defined problems ! When we should be discovering who they 'really' are & assisting in their re-connection to civilian life !!!

This is a great topic. I use to let the label define who I was. I have learned much from my sessions with my Mental Health counselor at the VA. I have been given a new attitude about my life and the fact that any of the numerous labels I have are just that, labels. They do not define who I am, my actions and the way I handle these labels are a part of who I am, along with the way I treat other people in my daily life are a great definition of who I am. Thank you for posting this meme.

James

It hurts until they understand the nature of the beast.

I have never agreed with labeling people, especially kids. People tend to live down to the way they have been labeled.

The problem is not the label.....or my perception of myself.....the problem is the MEDIA rendition of the label.....and other peoples perception of the label.....I have PTSD.... my emotions are RAW.....I am quick to anger and quick to cry.....I have nightmares and rarely sleep past 3 AM.....
I deal with these each when they manifest themselves..... My wife asked me why when we fight....why do I lock myself in the bathroom..... I told her "so I wont hurt you"..... I avoid losing my temper....do not take drugs or drink alcohol.....so I can control myself....avoid losing my temper....try to see the absurdity and laugh..... I cry....if you can not handle seeing a grown man cry.....that is your problem not mine...... nothing I can do about the nightmares....they come with the territory....when I wake up at 3 AM..... I sneek into the den and work......THEN take a nap in the afternoon.....NO PROBLEM

The problem is that the media has portrayed us PTSD victims ( note: civilians can get PTSD also).....as TICKING TIME BOMBS just waiting to explode and go on a killing spree...... FALSE...... when I told my sister I had PTSD.....she quietly told me to please not visit anymore.....

THE PROBLEM is not so much with US.....as with how everyone else perceives us..... and there is little we can do about that.....

Not all veterans with PTSD are impacted the same way or to the same extent..... but most of us deal with it..... the only thing I would tell my brothers is.....at least for me.....it is being in control OF YOU that counts..... avoid drugs and alcohol and losing control of YOU.....and do not worry about the others and their labels..... there is no educating STUPID

COL Mikel J. Burroughs It is a bi-product of society. Everything needs to be neatly packaged so that it can be placed in the proper cubby hole. We are constantly asked to label ourselves for sorting purposes. Gender, Race, Age, Religious Preference, even weight can be a question used to sort people into groups. It can be as benign as not marketing women's clothing to men, but it can be used to segregate "desirable" from "undesirable." When it crosses over into mental health, I think labels are mostly harmful. The one exception is with triage. As with any medical concern, those with the most serious injuries must jump to the top of the list. I think that we as a society should be treating mental health concerns as injuries. They are not injuries to the body, but injuries to the soul. Without the soul, the body is useless. Without the body the soul is useless. Both need to be healed equally when an injury occurs, or the whole package that is a person suffers.
I am a large person. I refer to myself as the fat man, or fat guy. Why? Because I do not allow that to define who I am. Get it out of the way, and it can't be used as a negative label. Acknowledging a negative takes away its power. The problem with this philosophy when it comes to Mental Health is that our society still treats mental health as something to be joked about as opposed to a serious medical concern. If one comes forward, they are pitied, labeled as broken, or treated like a bomb that could explode at any moment. Broken record, but until we can stop that from happening, there is good reason for people to keep these concerns hidden.
The other questions are related. If you accept what someone else has labeled you, then that is what you will be. If it is a positive label, then it can raise a person up. More often though, labels are used to bring a person down. Those labels show a person what others think of them, and if that person allows those labels to define them, then the person will limit themselves purely based on that label. For example if a person is labeled by their supervisor as lazy, and they accept that, that person will have a tendency to become that label. No motivation to improve, no motivation to go above and beyond, no motivation to prove the label that they have accepted wrong. On the flip side, if that same person chooses not to accept that label, then they will go out to prove that the label doesn't define them by seeking out the source of the label and correcting their deficiencies. Again this is difficult when it is something intangible like Mental Health. If a person is labeled as "the broken veteran," "Nuts," "crazy," or "out there" that person is lost. If one chooses to believe that label, then they are likely to turn that into a feeling of hopelessness, and go to a really dark place in their soul. If one chooses not to believe it, they are left with the struggle of rising above a label that is intangible. It is a lose lose situation.
The best way, in this layman's opinion, to overcome this is by fighting the culture. It is difficult. It means making an effort to change the way people think. Instead of the broken veteran, how about the person who is hurting. Instead of slapping a label on someone, maybe offer an ear to let that person express themselves. At the very least, don't exacerbate the problem by minimizing the pain. It involves bringing a level of humanity back to our me centric society.