hey everybody-
quick question for ya. what do you do when your wife doesn't understand your meds? i guess what i mean is that my lovely wife has seen over the years the side effects of certain meds that i have taken and she just hates it. i guess in her mind its like taking a bazooka to a gunfight. one of the meds that i take is an anti-psychotic and completely knocks me out. any advice? respectfully, SM

What do -you- think about the side effects of your meds? Do you agree with her and are you willing to go back and ask for some different meds to ease the sleepiness, or are you satisfied with your meds?

Hi shadowmedic,

You could mention to her that most medications have side effects and that she is lucky she doesn't have to deal with it.

Also, a bazooka would get the job done and that is why we take medications, to achieve the best out come.

Maybe you could ask her how she feels about taking hormone replacements. There are some very bad side effects to those medications, but one has to weight the benefits versus the risks, as we do with a lot of things in life.

Peace
Tammy

Are the side-effects more tolerable than what would happen if you didn't take the medications?

Also, is the problem more that she really doesn't understand or could it be that she just hates seeing those side-effects? I complain about some of the medications my husband has to take because they mess with his moods, but I'll take that over him being in severe pain. But it doesn't stop me from whining on occasion "ugh, ugh, yag, why must we put up with these darn things?" :p

i just started a new anti-depressant just yesterday and haven't really noticed any difference yet. the anti-psychotic does put me out in certain doses, but if i cut it down in its dose, i'm still able to function. but as you guys stated before, its up to me not her. i guess i just feel like the object of criticism since i just went to the psych doc yesterday.thanks for your help. respectfully, SM

Shadowmedic:

My husband with through something similar to this. I have taken medication for the past 10 years, but my husband had not. He is no longer on medication, but at the time he went through a situation that he was taking more meds than me. One of the meds made him sleep. (I wish I could get more into it, but I don't feel comfortably posting my husband's story).

Long story short, I freaked. I was afraid that he was not going to be there if I needed him. He reassured me that he could still function in emergencies. So basically, it was not the fact he was on medication, but my own fears and mental illness that caused me to react selfishly.

His reassurance helped tremendously. I just needed to know that he was still there. This is probably all very scary for your wife. We know and she knows that you can get better, but for now the medication is validating her fear. Does that make sense?

Once you get out of moderation, I could PM you and tell you more if you wish. My husband would be more than happy for me to share his story with someone in the military if it would be helpful. I just don't feel comfortable posting it publicly.

Best wishes to you and your wife
Cecilia

thanks for sharing cecilia-
i think you are probably right to some extent. also, i have to consider the make-up of my household. i consider my self quiet, laid back, and not too critical of things. my wife on the other hand, is an extrovert in nature, always wants to know what's going on, is very critical and opinionated about most things regardless of their value in meaning. what's the old saying? opposites attract? lolol. thanks again, SM

All the understanding in the world, or not understanding. All the empathy, and sympathy in the world.... It comes down to this. No one can ever fully understand or comprehend what someone else is going through.

Having someone watch you go through this is tough. They are very concerned, and I am sure it hurts them deeply. But we do what we have to do to get through this, and that's the bottom line IMO...

She Cat:

I totally agree. Don't stop taking the medication or anything else that is needed. Just because it may be scary for someone else does not mean you don't take care of yourself! I should have included that. You take care of you or it will not do anybody any good.

I hope you did not read that into my post that was not my intention.

Hmm, SM... How do you feel about the meds? Keeping with your use of metaphors, do you think a 'sidearm' might be more suitable than a bazooka?

SM, if you are okay with the meds for right now, then education might be your best weapon. Perhaps, the more she understands, the less she'll hate it. If you were taking insulin to manage diabetes, would she feel the same?

For every human being, PTSD or not, sleep effects our ability to function. I, personally, tried just about every non-prescription sleep aid. It did take bringing out the big guns to help me sleep. I don't take the prescribed dose of Seroquel, I take half because it knocks me out too much.

Good luck with this, Shadowmedic.

tude