The Bombings In Boston and the Triggers that Followed Me Everywhere.

I don't think I need to recount what happened yesterday.  When I heard about it from my father when I got home from work, I had to (and I mean HAD TO) see what was going on.

Bad Idea.

The descriptions, the blood, first-hand accounts, everything, triggered my memories of stuff that I had seen and been through over in Iraq.  The second I knew I was triggered, I slammed shut my computer and I walked away and tried to do stuff that would take my mind off of what had happened up in Boston.  I succeeded pretty well and was able to go to bed at a fairly normal hour.  Then the nightmares came.  They weren't so bad that they woke me up, but it was an endless cycle of suffering and emotional pain.  When my alarm went off at 0600, I didn't get out of bed.  I barely made it to work and I knew that I was going to be anxious as all hell.

And I was.  An hour in, I had to pop an extra anxiety med to keep my self going.  Another hour later, another.
Wash, rinse, repeat for five straight hours.  I didn't have any more with me and I knew that my anxiety was still getting worse.  I gutted it out but told my boss that as soon as the evening shift came in at two, I had to leave.  To his credit, he didn't question it.  He thanked me for gutting it out today.  I think he knew that something was really rattling my cage.

So, I came home and I unwound.  I took another pill and ended up passing out in my recliner, only to be woken up when my wife and daughter got home.  I still feel triggered, but I am hoping that is something that I can work through with my individual therapist and group therapy tomorrow.  I guess we'll see,

This is where I want to do a little explaining.  Why was work so hard for me?

Everybody, and I do mean EVERYBODY was talking about it.  The customers, the employees, everybody.  Everybody had a theory about who did it, why, how, everything.  To make matters worse, I came into work and the flags were still at full mast.  It just tweaked me that much more.  I immediately went to the store manager and asked him if he knew why the flags weren't at half mast.  He said he'd look into it.  Thankfully, the next opportunity I had to check, they were or I think I might have lost it.  All in all, it was one conversation between two customers that I overhead that almost made me blow a gasket:

CustA:  You heard about that Boston Shit, right?
CustB:  Yeah, that's what happens when you let those dirty Arabs into our country.
CustA:  I know, man.  They already got a Saudi in lock-up.
CustB:  They should have just let that sand-N****R ass bleed.

Yup.  This shit brings out the best in people, don't ya think?  I almost didn't walk away.  All I can say is this:

If you are a veteran who has been triggered by this bombing, don't watch the fucking news!  Just leave well enough alone.  If you don't trust yourself not to, ask your family or spouse for support in this.  It makes things easier when I am not constantly re-triggering myself.  It's not that I don't care, it's that I care to much and the feeling of helplessness, not being able to do anything to help kills me.  I know you know what I mean.

So there it is.  Avoid triggers and avoid people you know that are ignorant and hateful.  Now I am calling it a day and I am going to spend time with my wife and daughter who I suddenly find even more precious than I did yesterday.