I feel like writing. I don't know about what yet. I guess I'll find out as I write.
Yesterday went decently. Went to the national cemetery and walked around with my wife and daughters. Then went to my parents' house for a cookout. The whole family was there besides my youngest sister, who was ... somewhere else. Some other state, visiting her boyfriend and his parents. I know he's from Maine, but I don't know if that's where she went.
Today has been ok, so far. It's one of my daughters' birthday. So we went and watched the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Dead Men Tell No Tales. It was ok. I won't spoil anything here.
I've got an appointment with audiology in the morning. Going to be evaluated for hearing aids. A part of me wonders that if I could hear better, if I would be less anxious in crowds. On that note, I need to go to the DMV. My doctor filled out a paper allowing me to get handicapped something. I'm not sure if it's a hangar or plates. I don't need to use handicapped parking always, though. My knee only hurts bad enough to use the handicapped parking about two or three times a month.
I won't feel bad when I do have to use it, though. I generally park at least halfway down a parking lot at the store. It's been a habit for me for a long time. My sister once asked me why I did so. I responded with, "I have two good legs, and can walk. Some people aren't so lucky."
I'm in kind of a weird mood tonight. I'm not happy. But I'm not sad, anxious, or depressed either. Could be my meds. I took my Mirtazapine last night. Probably having an effect on me.
I've been thinking of this blog, and its purpose. While this blog is for me, with the attention that my last post received, I've realized that other people will likely be looking through it, too. And as I believe I said in my first post, maybe one day this will be a triumphant story of an overcomer.
I was speaking to someone on Skype. They said that the blog would be good for people trying to overcome things of their own. The reason is, you look at someone who overcame. And it's hard to relate to them. Because they're writing a book, or a motivational speech, or whatever; but they're writing it after the fact. They are writing what they went through from the perspective of someone on the other side.
This blog is different. It's being written in the moment. Not from someone who has overcome. But from someone who is living it. Someone who is going through it right now.
So, when someone is going through something, and they read my blog, they'll see the pain and suffering as I live it. Not as I lived it before.
The biggest problem I have with a blog though, is that people will land on the last post if they visit the site. I wish they could be immediately directed to the first post, to read through and see the changes as they happen. It's kind of like my above rant. If they see only the last post, they might think the whole thing is written from the perspective of however I am in that post.
Well. I think I'm done rambling. I have another thing to talk about, but it'll likely be a whole post on its own. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe five minutes from now. Who knows.
- Sapper Woody
Showing posts with label Insomnia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Insomnia. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 30, 2017
Monday, May 29, 2017
...his wife.
29 May 217
Today is Memorial Day. It's roughly 0200 as I'm typing this words, and watching them appear on my screen.
I once talked to a 1SG of mine whose name I won't mention because I don't have his permission to. He suffered from PTSD. He told me how when he came back from a deployment, he was torn up. He was drunk almost every night and almost lost his marriage. I asked him how he managed things, and he gave me some interesting advice.
He told me that he allowed himself a couple of "bad" days a year. Days where he would take a six pack to the grave of his lost soldiers and just cry. Get it all out at once. Then, when he starts to break down, he just looks forward to and reminds himself that there's a day coming when he will let it all out again.
I've tried to do that myself. It hasn't had as much success for me as it has him. Different people respond to different things. But, in an attempt, I've allowed myself three "bad" days in the year. Memorial Day, Veteran's Day, and October 15th. I won't go into why October 15th here. That's not the purpose of this post.
I was thinking of shaving my beard and trimming my hair to acceptable AR 670-1 standards, wearing my dress blues, and going to the local national cemetery tomorrow. And that got me thinking of another time I visited a national cemetery. And I want this blog post to be a happy one. So we're going to talk about that visit.
The tombstones at this cemetery had the usual markings. Rank, name, DOB and DOD. But in this cemetery the wives of the veterans were buried on the other side of the tombstone. And the inscription over the wife was, "his wife".
At first I was appalled by it. That the wife would get just those two words. His wife. Then I started thinking, and I pointed it out to my wife. Those two words, to some may not mean anything. But, to those who know, it means so much more.
If they were to attempt to put a description of who that person was, it would take up three or four tombstones. Supporter. Lover. Mother of his children. Financial Planner. Caregiver. Listening Ear. Patient. Someone who could hold a house together while he was away for six, nine, twelve, fifteen months, or more. Someone who didn't kick him when he was down. Someone who shared his darkest secrets that he couldn't tell anyone else. Someone who loved the person he was, yet pushed him to be the person he could be. Someone who stayed with him, despite all the troubles of a normal household, much less a military household. The woman who had to keep it all together when he was either absent, or couldn't keep it together himself. Someone who welcomed him home, and helped him through the transition from deployment to garrison life. Someone who held him when the nightmares started. Someone who calmed him when the thunder woke him up. Someone who understood when he was startled and acted out of training. Someone who acted as a liaison to help him reconnect with his children, who didn't know him when he returned from deployment. Someone who loved him, despite the changes that occurred while he was away. Someone who kept their marriage vows to him despite the hardships. Someone who showed him the good side of life when he could only see the bad.
So, yeah. "His Wife". Two simple words, that mean so much more. Those two words are the simplest, yet most profound things to read on a tombstone.
Today is Memorial Day. It's roughly 0200 as I'm typing this words, and watching them appear on my screen.
I once talked to a 1SG of mine whose name I won't mention because I don't have his permission to. He suffered from PTSD. He told me how when he came back from a deployment, he was torn up. He was drunk almost every night and almost lost his marriage. I asked him how he managed things, and he gave me some interesting advice.
He told me that he allowed himself a couple of "bad" days a year. Days where he would take a six pack to the grave of his lost soldiers and just cry. Get it all out at once. Then, when he starts to break down, he just looks forward to and reminds himself that there's a day coming when he will let it all out again.
I've tried to do that myself. It hasn't had as much success for me as it has him. Different people respond to different things. But, in an attempt, I've allowed myself three "bad" days in the year. Memorial Day, Veteran's Day, and October 15th. I won't go into why October 15th here. That's not the purpose of this post.
I was thinking of shaving my beard and trimming my hair to acceptable AR 670-1 standards, wearing my dress blues, and going to the local national cemetery tomorrow. And that got me thinking of another time I visited a national cemetery. And I want this blog post to be a happy one. So we're going to talk about that visit.
The tombstones at this cemetery had the usual markings. Rank, name, DOB and DOD. But in this cemetery the wives of the veterans were buried on the other side of the tombstone. And the inscription over the wife was, "his wife".
At first I was appalled by it. That the wife would get just those two words. His wife. Then I started thinking, and I pointed it out to my wife. Those two words, to some may not mean anything. But, to those who know, it means so much more.
If they were to attempt to put a description of who that person was, it would take up three or four tombstones. Supporter. Lover. Mother of his children. Financial Planner. Caregiver. Listening Ear. Patient. Someone who could hold a house together while he was away for six, nine, twelve, fifteen months, or more. Someone who didn't kick him when he was down. Someone who shared his darkest secrets that he couldn't tell anyone else. Someone who loved the person he was, yet pushed him to be the person he could be. Someone who stayed with him, despite all the troubles of a normal household, much less a military household. The woman who had to keep it all together when he was either absent, or couldn't keep it together himself. Someone who welcomed him home, and helped him through the transition from deployment to garrison life. Someone who held him when the nightmares started. Someone who calmed him when the thunder woke him up. Someone who understood when he was startled and acted out of training. Someone who acted as a liaison to help him reconnect with his children, who didn't know him when he returned from deployment. Someone who loved him, despite the changes that occurred while he was away. Someone who kept their marriage vows to him despite the hardships. Someone who showed him the good side of life when he could only see the bad.
So, yeah. "His Wife". Two simple words, that mean so much more. Those two words are the simplest, yet most profound things to read on a tombstone.
Sunday, April 23, 2017
23 April 2017
Exactly a month since my last post. I know you've been waiting with baited breath, checking my site every day to see if I had posted again. But I warned you in the beginning. I will post when I feel like it. And I haven't felt like it.
Truth is, I've been taking my meds. Yay! Right? No. My meds have been having me sleep for literally about fourteen hours a day. I haven't been to school in weeks. It's safe to assume I've failed all my classes this semester.
Except I do feel the need to point out that one of my professors has called me to check up on me. She's awesome. She even offered me a way to pass the class. I'm hoping to take her up on it, though I honestly don't know if I'll be able to.
I'm trying to figure out how to finish school, as I'll likely be dropped out of the program I was using for funding. I'm hoping that I can use my GI Bill. I've been on a chapter 31 vocational rehab up until now.
And I don't feel like writing any more. So, guess you'll have to wait until I do.
- Sapper Woody
Truth is, I've been taking my meds. Yay! Right? No. My meds have been having me sleep for literally about fourteen hours a day. I haven't been to school in weeks. It's safe to assume I've failed all my classes this semester.
Except I do feel the need to point out that one of my professors has called me to check up on me. She's awesome. She even offered me a way to pass the class. I'm hoping to take her up on it, though I honestly don't know if I'll be able to.
I'm trying to figure out how to finish school, as I'll likely be dropped out of the program I was using for funding. I'm hoping that I can use my GI Bill. I've been on a chapter 31 vocational rehab up until now.
And I don't feel like writing any more. So, guess you'll have to wait until I do.
- Sapper Woody
Friday, March 3, 2017
03 March 2017
It would be better if I were dead. At least, that's what the voices told me. I hear them sometimes, but not all the time. Not enough to get meds for it, apparently. When I told the Doctor about them, they said that they could prescribes some anti-psychotics, but they wanted to hold off on that. So, I think I was diagnosed with mild psychosis, in addition to my other diagnoses of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, Anxiety, and Adjustment Disorder.
I only hear them when I get depressed. And today I was. Two nights ago I took a sleep medication and then slept for 15 hours. My body is VERY reactive to medication. So, even though I only took 50mg of Trazedone, I slept from about 2230 until 1330 the next day. Last night, I only took have a pill. I couldn't sleep. I tried, honestly. After laying in bed until about 0030, I got up and moved around. I tried to fall asleep again around 0230, but again failed. I was feeling bad mentally.
When my alarm went off at 0600 signaling that it was time for me to wake up and practice my Kung Fu, I instead went upstairs and took a shower. That's when the voices started. "You're a loser!" "You should die!" "Fill the tub up and let it drown!" I don't know why that last voice referred to me in third person, but it did. I try to ignore the voices, but they won't go away.
To get my mind off of them, I tried working a simple physics problem that I had in class a few days ago. If a mass of 100Kg is hanging off a cliff 20 meters from the ground, attached to a rope that goes up to a pulley and then along the top of the cliff to another mass, assuming a .2 friction coefficient, how heavy must that second mass be in order to only be going 10m/s when the first mass hits the ground?
I worked it out loud, doing the calculations without pen, paper, or calculator. It scared my wife for a second, because she didn't know who I was talking to. I kept messing up the calculations, though I got them close. I came up with 250Kg to accelerate at 2m/s^2. I remembered that the answer was something closer to 270Kg.
This helped me a little bit, but I could not shut my brain off. The voices kept grabbing at me for attention. Finally, at 0700, when I was supposed to leave for school, I decided I couldn't take it anymore and had to sleep. I couldn't drive anywhere anyway.
My wife asked me what needed to happen for me to be able to go to class today. I told her I wasn't sure, but that I had to reset my mind somehow. So, she graciously stayed with me until I fell asleep at roughly 0800. I woke up at 1300, but I was still out of it. My wife sat with me on the couch for hours watching the TV show "Scrubs", until I finally somewhat snapped out of it.
Missing class depresses me, and also gives me anxiety. But, even worse, I missed a newspaper interview today at 1100 that I was supposed to be a part of. The University newspaper wanted to interview our robotics team. I missed it. I keep letting everyone down.
Even now, since I am feeling out of it, the voices are there. I can ignore them for the most part, though. But I can still hear them when I am not thinking about anything else. "Why are you typing?" "No one cares what you think!" "Give up. You're done. You can't come back from this."
Are they right? I don't know. I do know that I have my livestream to look forward to tonight, playing Smite on the Xbox with a couple friends of mine. That always seems to help me feel better. Hopefully when I can livestream I'll get to talking to my friends, and they'll pull me out of this. They don't (or maybe they do) know it, but chatting with them live helps a lot.
I thought about calling the veteran's crisis hotline again today. But I decided not to. They always ask if you're having suicidal thoughts, and I usually have to lie to them and tell them that I've never contemplated it. I don't want them to send someone over to "help" me, and cause more stress. The last thing I need is to be taken to the hospital and put under suicide watch. The stigma attached to that would break me.
Besides, I have my family. My wife and my three daughters. I couldn't bear to leave them alone in the world. If for no other reason, I couldn't let my girls grow up without a Dad. They need me, as poor a job as I'm doing. It's better than nothing, in my way of thinking.
I only slept about five hours today. Hopefully that won't interfere with my sleeping tonight. I need to go to work tomorrow. I missed it today. And my disability isn't quite high enough that I can get by without working. Almost, but not quite. I still need to work about 20 hours per week to sustain my family.
Well, hopefully it can only go up from here.
- Sapper Woody
I only hear them when I get depressed. And today I was. Two nights ago I took a sleep medication and then slept for 15 hours. My body is VERY reactive to medication. So, even though I only took 50mg of Trazedone, I slept from about 2230 until 1330 the next day. Last night, I only took have a pill. I couldn't sleep. I tried, honestly. After laying in bed until about 0030, I got up and moved around. I tried to fall asleep again around 0230, but again failed. I was feeling bad mentally.
When my alarm went off at 0600 signaling that it was time for me to wake up and practice my Kung Fu, I instead went upstairs and took a shower. That's when the voices started. "You're a loser!" "You should die!" "Fill the tub up and let it drown!" I don't know why that last voice referred to me in third person, but it did. I try to ignore the voices, but they won't go away.
To get my mind off of them, I tried working a simple physics problem that I had in class a few days ago. If a mass of 100Kg is hanging off a cliff 20 meters from the ground, attached to a rope that goes up to a pulley and then along the top of the cliff to another mass, assuming a .2 friction coefficient, how heavy must that second mass be in order to only be going 10m/s when the first mass hits the ground?
I worked it out loud, doing the calculations without pen, paper, or calculator. It scared my wife for a second, because she didn't know who I was talking to. I kept messing up the calculations, though I got them close. I came up with 250Kg to accelerate at 2m/s^2. I remembered that the answer was something closer to 270Kg.
This helped me a little bit, but I could not shut my brain off. The voices kept grabbing at me for attention. Finally, at 0700, when I was supposed to leave for school, I decided I couldn't take it anymore and had to sleep. I couldn't drive anywhere anyway.
My wife asked me what needed to happen for me to be able to go to class today. I told her I wasn't sure, but that I had to reset my mind somehow. So, she graciously stayed with me until I fell asleep at roughly 0800. I woke up at 1300, but I was still out of it. My wife sat with me on the couch for hours watching the TV show "Scrubs", until I finally somewhat snapped out of it.
Missing class depresses me, and also gives me anxiety. But, even worse, I missed a newspaper interview today at 1100 that I was supposed to be a part of. The University newspaper wanted to interview our robotics team. I missed it. I keep letting everyone down.
Even now, since I am feeling out of it, the voices are there. I can ignore them for the most part, though. But I can still hear them when I am not thinking about anything else. "Why are you typing?" "No one cares what you think!" "Give up. You're done. You can't come back from this."
Are they right? I don't know. I do know that I have my livestream to look forward to tonight, playing Smite on the Xbox with a couple friends of mine. That always seems to help me feel better. Hopefully when I can livestream I'll get to talking to my friends, and they'll pull me out of this. They don't (or maybe they do) know it, but chatting with them live helps a lot.
I thought about calling the veteran's crisis hotline again today. But I decided not to. They always ask if you're having suicidal thoughts, and I usually have to lie to them and tell them that I've never contemplated it. I don't want them to send someone over to "help" me, and cause more stress. The last thing I need is to be taken to the hospital and put under suicide watch. The stigma attached to that would break me.
Besides, I have my family. My wife and my three daughters. I couldn't bear to leave them alone in the world. If for no other reason, I couldn't let my girls grow up without a Dad. They need me, as poor a job as I'm doing. It's better than nothing, in my way of thinking.
I only slept about five hours today. Hopefully that won't interfere with my sleeping tonight. I need to go to work tomorrow. I missed it today. And my disability isn't quite high enough that I can get by without working. Almost, but not quite. I still need to work about 20 hours per week to sustain my family.
Well, hopefully it can only go up from here.
- Sapper Woody
Friday, February 24, 2017
24 February 2017
This post is coming in on the heels of my very first post. I just recently got off the phone with the veteran's crisis hotline. Talked to a nice woman. Shaundra, I think her name was. If not, that's what I'm calling her now. It was something close at any rate.
The veteran's crisis hotline uses the same phone number as the suicide hotline, but when you get on there, there is a button to press if you are a veteran or calling about a veteran. Only my wife knows this until this blog post is read, but I call the veteran's crisis hotline about two times a month. I wear a bracelet on my right wrist at all times that has the hotline number printed on it.
I called the hotline because I needed to talk to someone, and it was 2 AM. I was on my way home from building a robot at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock for an upcoming competition we're having. We're leaving in less than twelve hours from now.
I called because I'm unsure of what my future holds. I am stressed about the direction my schooling is going. Right now I am a dual major in Physics and Math, with a minor in Secondary Education. Problem is, I don't think that I can do it. I can barely make my own classes, much less teach day in and day out.
I'm thinking of dropping my two teaching classes that I am taking this semester. I'm taking more than a full course load at 20 hours this semester. In addition to my two teaching classes, I'm taking Physics I with the associated lab, Calculus III, Linear Algebra, and Composition II.
I'm contemplating dropping my teaching minor altogether, actually. At this point, I am sure that I won't be able to teach, as most high schools won't keep a teacher around who is frequently absent; even if it is due to combat related mental issues. So, I'm thinking of dropping that minor, and leaving those hours open to my majors and possibly some electives.
I like music. Maybe I'll take a music course. I heard tonight that you can actually make some money by taking band, and playing in recitals. I play the piano; not good enough to play concerts, though. I play the Baritone. I could possibly play that in band. I am also a tenor, and could sing in a choir. I may try out for one of those next semester.
I did find out that Calculus III is the highest math needed in order to apply as a college math tutor at UALR, working in what they call the Math Lab. I'd like that. I could help people with their math, make money, and work and go to school at the same place.
Speaking of school, I have to leave my house in about an hour to make it to my first class. I've been up all night. I stayed up so late, that I knew that if I slept, I wouldn't wake up in time for class. I have some mild insomnia. And by mild, I mean that it is severe when it hits, but it doesn't hit too often. The longest I've ever stayed up unable to sleep was roughly 78 hours. At that point, I started to hallucinate. I was sure that I had played Kerbol Space Program for over an hour. I 'woke up' to find that it was five minutes later, and nothing I had thought I did in the game had been done.
Well, I'm out of time for this morning. I'm sure I'll rant some more later.
- Sapper Woody
The veteran's crisis hotline uses the same phone number as the suicide hotline, but when you get on there, there is a button to press if you are a veteran or calling about a veteran. Only my wife knows this until this blog post is read, but I call the veteran's crisis hotline about two times a month. I wear a bracelet on my right wrist at all times that has the hotline number printed on it.
I called the hotline because I needed to talk to someone, and it was 2 AM. I was on my way home from building a robot at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock for an upcoming competition we're having. We're leaving in less than twelve hours from now.
I called because I'm unsure of what my future holds. I am stressed about the direction my schooling is going. Right now I am a dual major in Physics and Math, with a minor in Secondary Education. Problem is, I don't think that I can do it. I can barely make my own classes, much less teach day in and day out.
I'm thinking of dropping my two teaching classes that I am taking this semester. I'm taking more than a full course load at 20 hours this semester. In addition to my two teaching classes, I'm taking Physics I with the associated lab, Calculus III, Linear Algebra, and Composition II.
I'm contemplating dropping my teaching minor altogether, actually. At this point, I am sure that I won't be able to teach, as most high schools won't keep a teacher around who is frequently absent; even if it is due to combat related mental issues. So, I'm thinking of dropping that minor, and leaving those hours open to my majors and possibly some electives.
I like music. Maybe I'll take a music course. I heard tonight that you can actually make some money by taking band, and playing in recitals. I play the piano; not good enough to play concerts, though. I play the Baritone. I could possibly play that in band. I am also a tenor, and could sing in a choir. I may try out for one of those next semester.
I did find out that Calculus III is the highest math needed in order to apply as a college math tutor at UALR, working in what they call the Math Lab. I'd like that. I could help people with their math, make money, and work and go to school at the same place.
Speaking of school, I have to leave my house in about an hour to make it to my first class. I've been up all night. I stayed up so late, that I knew that if I slept, I wouldn't wake up in time for class. I have some mild insomnia. And by mild, I mean that it is severe when it hits, but it doesn't hit too often. The longest I've ever stayed up unable to sleep was roughly 78 hours. At that point, I started to hallucinate. I was sure that I had played Kerbol Space Program for over an hour. I 'woke up' to find that it was five minutes later, and nothing I had thought I did in the game had been done.
Well, I'm out of time for this morning. I'm sure I'll rant some more later.
- Sapper Woody
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