My symptoms of PTSD use to seriously distort my perception of what I saw when I looked in the mirror. It still distorts how I think and feel about myself too often, but no longer what I see. I mean, I no longer see what once looked like road maps to me on my eyelids. (LOL)

And, though genetically I have somewhat of a darker color below my eyes, people don't approach me anymore and ask me if I currently have a busted nose bc of the two black eyes that they perceived I presently had when in fact I had nothing of the sort at the time.

But I think I know what you mean angel, bc I'm almost certain that I truly do look very different and I know I behave very differently when I'm suffering with many symptoms of my PTSD simultaneously. And, I think it's an interplay of emotional and nuero/physiological manifestations. I mean with too high anxiety, I've previously had myofacial paralysis and a litany of other nuero/phys. symptoms and all escalating from my PTSD and erupting deep and immense emotion.