I suffer from PTSD, anxiety, depression and started noticing blackouts. Kindly advice.

Question

Hello Doctor,

I recently consulted a counsellor suggested by my probation officer and discovered that I have extreme post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression, etc. I wonder if any of this could be related to the trouble I have got myself into. When I get very overwhelmed with emotion or stress, I tend to black out completely but still functioning, and I come back to normal after a few minutes, but I have no memory of what I have done during those minutes. In my whole life, I had a lot of bad things that have happened to me and my family, but I have never dealt with them. This past year a lot of bad personal situations have happened, and now I am starting to notice the blackouts. What can I do?

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

You should get yourself investigated for the blackouts and memory problems you face. First, you should consult a neurologist for that. Once every other neurological issue are cleared, then only we can diagnose whether it as related to your anxiety, depression or PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) if so then it is psychogenic. In most cases, a psychogenic blackout is an involuntary reaction of the brain to pressure or distress. Psychogenic blackouts sometimes develop after people have experienced ill-treatment or trauma and such conditions are treatable and curable. But we need to identify the severity of anxiety and PTSD and then the treatment slowly starts with medicines, psychotherapy and relaxation therapy. You can be cured completely, but it takes some time. Consult a psychologist or psychiatrist. Take care.