this post was submitted on 27 Nov 2023
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I’m a medically retired U.S. Marine with severe PTSD, and I get asked this question a lot regarding “realistic” shooters and games depicting war, especially scenes of brutality.
But the answer is no. My triggers are quite specific, generic things like gunfire and explosions and injured people singing the song of suffering don’t bother me. I would need to see or hear things very very closely resembling the things I still have nightmares about now, more than 20 years later.
Just being out and about or especially in crowds, my own hypervigilance and intrusive memories are more likely to trigger panic attacks or derealization than any scene in any video game or movie or anything.
I've used some of the more realistic games to help me get over my triggers concerning explosions. Getting mortared and rocketed in Iraq at least daily for a year works a number on your mental well being.
Things like games or movies don't do it because I expect it. Sudden, unexpected loud noises in the real world will do it though. Once I was at my dad's place and he started cooking, but he turned on the wrong burner on the stove - the burner he turned on actually has a glass serving bowl on it. After a while it started to hiss and I realized what was happening, and I tried to quickly reach the stove and turn it off, but the bowl suddenly shattered into a thousand little pieces. Basically exploded. That did it. I had an episode on the spot.