New relationship, PTSD flare

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ferme_noire
Posts: 2
Joined: October 16th, 2014, 9:52 am

New relationship, PTSD flare

Post by ferme_noire »

I started dating a woman this spring, and things were going really well. We were at the "I'm pretty crazy about you" stage. One weekend I got a text saying that she was having a rough day and having a stress-induced flare-up of PTSD. I hadn't been aware that she had PTSD, so it was on our next date that I learned that intimacy wouldn't be possible again until the flare was over, and that she would be dealing with hyper vigilance and difficulty sleeping, and she was able to convey that it was going to be a very rough time for her but that she couldn't tell me much more than that. So, I don't know what the traumatic event was or when it happened. She's 51 and has never been in the military.

I know through my own reading that she's likely not really capable of communicating much with me. She has significant lifelong hearing impairment, so we usually communicate throughout the week through texts. Her work is still stressful and she's putting in long hours. Sometimes I get a good text exchange and a photo still, but come this weekend I won't have seen her for four weeks. For a few months would get together and watch TV or do something else casual once every week or two as long as she didn't have a migraine or wasn't too tired from the week. Most days, though, I only get one or two texts in reply to my few. (I don't send more than a few if I don't get any replies.)

What I'm asking is, am I'm doing this right? I want to stay supportive without being intrusive.
What I was wondering today is, is it okay for me to ask her how she's doing? She doesn't usually answer that when I do.
Or should I stick to conversation that doesn't ask about her well-being and just assume it's still crappy?

I try to keep my texts positive. Just a good morning, some anecdote from my day, a good night. I don't vent my feelings. I told her that I miss her today, but I also said that first and foremost I want her to take care of herself. She said she appreciated that, and me. I don't think this is her first time dealing with flare-ups. I don't know if she's ever been dating anyone during one, though. I don't know anyone to talk about it with.

--FN
(I'm also female by the way. And the person I'm dating is on a spot on the queer spectrum where she goes by "he" sometimes situationally, so I might use the male pronoun sometimes and get everyone confused.)
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manuel_moe_g
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Re: New relationship, PTSD flare

Post by manuel_moe_g »

ferme_noire wrote:I told her that I miss her today, but I also said that first and foremost I want her to take care of herself. She said she appreciated that, and me.
You are awesome!
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http://www.reddit.com/r/obsequious_thumbtack -- Obsequious Thumbtack Headdress
ferme_noire
Posts: 2
Joined: October 16th, 2014, 9:52 am

Re: New relationship, PTSD flare

Post by ferme_noire »

Or maybe it's just me.

Last night she went out to a play with a longtime friend who's an ex and looked like she was having a great time. Last weekend she had a friend from out of town stay with her for the long weekend and they went out and did fun stuff together.

Is it just me she can't be with? I'm not asking for sex or intimacy. Just any opportunity to spend time together. I don't care what. Fuck. This sucks. I don't feel like I have a right to communicate my feelings to her.
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