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@DeanYateswrote:
Hi @Former-Member
It has to be an individual decision. You have to feel comfortable sharing. When I tell people about my PTSD and say I got it from working in Iraq, covering the Boxing Day tsunami, the Bali bombings, losing three staff in Baghdad, everyone gets it. What I mean is that in a sense, my experience is an easy one to share. I really understand that for others it can be very difficult given the nature of the trauma. That said, I believe that sharing with people who will listen with empathy and try to understand is worth doing. I will be forever grateful to a former colleague from Baghdad who said to me, when I was at my lowest point, that I was not alone. He had gone through the same thing. Until then, I have told virtually no one.From my experience, sharing helps the healing process and moving on. I just don't think bottling up works. By sharing, talking, journaling and processing - I think you get control of the narrative. You get to have more control over how you feel. You give yourself a chance to heal.

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My friend still has flashbacks from an event that happened forty years ago & every time a friend dies he has trouble dealing with a death & goes into depression the same time every year & withdraws for a few months as though dwelling on it. They write in a journal but still have problems dealing with traumatic events. As though their life is put on hold & feel guilty for enjoying life because someone else has died.