PTSD Patrol Sunday Morning Empowerment Zone Engine Noise

Engine noise in your skull
PTSD Patrol Empowerment Zone
Kathie Costos
July 15, 2018

On Bell Performance there is an article on sounds your engine should not be making.

Diagnosing Common Engine Noises - James on Engines #3
Posted by: James Dunst

The Common Problem: Engine Noises When an unfamiliar noise starts coming from somewhere under the hood, people get scared. They may not know enough about complex engine systems to know if it’s something to worry about or not. 

Let’s discuss some of the source areas mechanics find to be the most common places for engine noises to originate from.

Some of the causes of this condition are improper fuel octane, engine overheating, improper ignition timing, the EGR valve not functioning properly and problems with the computer or knock sensor. All these conditions can cause the air fuel mixture in the cylinders to ignite before it’s supposed to. This creates multiple flame fronts in the cylinder fighting each other and causing the pinging and rattling noise. Check your owner’s manual to make sure you’re using the right grade of fuel. Or you can switch to a higher grade for a period and see if the noise goes away. If it doesn’t, you’ll want to look at these other possible causes.

When you are not sure about the cause of the noise you hear in your engine, you start to hope it just stops. You want your ride to go back to normal. While you wait for it to stop, more damage is done to your engine.

That is the same thing with PTSD and the engine that is in your skull. Your brain is the engine that drives you!

Sure you can call a friend who knows more about engines than you do. Most of the time, they can guess what should be done by what you explain to them. If you do not have a problem telling them about the vehicle you drive, why would you have problem telling them about the vehicle you live in?

When they cannot figure out what the cause of the noise is, you to a mechanic, trained to repair your vehicle. They know how to diagnose what the cause is as much as they know how to repair it. 

Same thing with going to get the noise in your head diagnosed at the VA. Their mechanics are therapist and they know how to get you back in control of the road ahead.

If you are not seeking help for PTSD, most of the time it is because you do not know what it is. You just assume that there is something "wrong" with you instead of knowing what is "strong" within you. 

You are a survivor of something that could have killed you! Any shame in that? Trauma is Greek for "wound" and there is no shame in being wounded! It hits the strongest part of you and that is your emotional core.

The strongest part of you? Yes, that is what makes you, you. That never changes even though "how" you are does change.

Is it time to see a mechanic?

When the engine in your vehicle makes a strange noise, you hope it will stop. When it doesn't, you either call a friend who knows more about that stuff than you do. If not, then you take it to a mechanic to have the problem diagnosed. So what stops you when that engine is in your skull? #PTSD happened because you survived something that tried to kill you physically and emotionally. You survived it physically, and can heal the rest of your life. #TakeBackYourLife

Sitting down yesterday getting my thoughts together for the PTSD Patrol video, Murray decided it was time to play again. 

It was over 90 here in Florida, but that doesn't seem to bother him at all. One thing you may have noticed is when Murray is in the videos, I am a lot more relaxed. I hate doing videos! I love filming someone else from the other side of the camera. 

Remember that if you still have a problem understanding the importance of service dogs. Murray is just a regular pet. 

Imagine what a trained service dog can do for someone with PTSD!