How do I help a guy with PTSD?

[Laurie_Hamilton]

I work at a supermarket in Chicago.. we had this new guy join us last week.

He was around 30, 6' and ripped. He just doesn't talk or mingle with any of us, even the male manager or other truck drivers or anyone.

He really reminds me of Sylvester Stallone from Rambo, both in appearance and behavior

He always sits by himself staring at space (Which I made out was a sign of PTSD from Google), but does the work assigned to him flawlessly. He would do heavy stuff like loading-unloading much better than us 6 women women combined!

Also he would, for a second, quickly react when he hears loud sounds, for example, when a customer drops something big or when someone turns on a drill.

When we enquired, the manager told us he was in the military and spend a lot of years overseas.

I tried talking with him a few times , and he mostly answers with a slow nod just like Rambo or a very short reply. There's no way I was able to engage a conversation more than half a minute.

Now, I am not going to lie, but I really have a crush on him... but I am more concerned to help him if he is going through a tough time...

(I am going anonymous cause I am sure he does not have a phone, forget social media.)

[Staximus]

One of my best friends growing up has PTSD from when he used to be a cop. He was the first responder to over 100 suicides and murders out in Wyoming, mostly suicides. There's a war going on inside his head every day. All the shit he saw is stuck in his head and he can't stop thinking about it. Another friend was in Iraq in the army and killed a bunch of people. If I were you, I would not ask him about any of that or ptsd unless he brings it up first. If you want to be a true friend, just be a good fun person to be around and take his mind off his troubles. My friend who used to be a cop does meditation and breathing exercises, like that guy named Wim Hoff "the ice man". It's good for anxiety.

[ShesRad80]

im in healthcare so ill take the bait - i dont wanna spank you too hard, but you cannot diagnose a person, google does not qualify anyone to Dr status. as someone who was diagnosed with PTSD (i been through heavy sh*t) even being in healthcare i was diagnosed by a proper professional. i am also from a generational military family, some had PTSD, some did not. it isn't a mystery to be solved, a broken toy to be fixed- its a guy just getting through the day not bothering anyone.

i won't make judgment either way on your motivations for wanting to help. be mindful, if he wanted to engage in heavy conversation more then a few seconds he would, maybe he just wants to put his time in and go home.

all you can try to do is routine small things hey good morning or hey how are you? over time he may or may not talk to you. there are so many unknown variables on the situation there is this phrase that comes to mind with your post, let sleeping dogs lie.

[SnowedIn]

Thank you. This.

[ShesRad80]

@SnowedIn 💕💕💕✌

[SnowedIn]

Forgive me but this question really seems like.

Assuming for a second you're serious, neither you, your manager, nor Google are even remotely qualified to diagnose PTSD. And just because he acts like it doesn't mean he has it. What you describe may just be his behavior and not PTSD.

Likewise, neither serving in the Military nor overseas means that someone will get PTSD.

But, it doesn't help you that you describe him the way boys in the 80s described Brooke Shields... sort of breathless, middle school tittering delight sprinkled with movie references.

You came clean at the end: you're crushing. Which is totally fine. Talk to the guy. Date him. And, yeah, maybe he does need help. In wich case that's for his health care provider or the Department of Veterans Affairs to help with.

[JackCarter]

I don't know why a lot of creeps here assume that you are selfish and not really concerned. I won't agree with assuming he has PTSD either.

Also , it not nice to appear as a disturbance if he just prefers to have time alone... So just try casual talking and get close to him and at the same time respect his space.

[AaronKrieger]

Stop romanticizing PTSD in your head. I get you're pretending to be a girl on here with this bullshit story for attention, but it's just retarded. All of this behavior you do at the workplace won't get you anywhere. Zoning out and reacting to loud sounds isn't strange.

Just be a normal guy.

[RHK36]

You're interest in him and helping him are solely for selfish reasons. He didn't ask you for help or cause an issue that requires you to mettle in people's business. You just want to "fix" him so you can have sex with him.

Stay single guys, these women ain't it. They only care when they have ulterior motives. Granted not all women are like this, but it's getting harder to tell them apart from the bad apples.

[spartan55]

Your reasons for going anonymous make no sense at all which.
Stop playing armchair psychiatrist. You have no idea what is going on with him, but you think you do, which is arrogant and not too smart.

[spartan55]

*which is weird.

[Anonymous]

It kinda sounds like your only interested in him because he’s big and strong tbh, which I guess isn’t a bad thing but it seems like your pushing him, id say let him be the one to come to you considering his mental predicament. Dude came out of a war, that stuff takes a long time to process and you don’t really have the qualifications to help no offense.


Imagine a guy trying to get you to open up to him and trust you after you’ve been molested,

[Anonymous]

you can't. On the upside i'm sure he would have sex with you.

[In_Trance]

Unless you're a certified counselor, you can't

[Anonymous]

Try to convince him to seek professional help.