why should you join a support group

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
June 8, 2021

Today I posted about how Wounded Times (my other site) reached over 5 million page views. I wrote that All that work was worth it because it was but for a long time, I didn't feel that way. I was getting less and less comments, hardly no feedback, and I started to think that it just didn't matter anymore. It hurt.

Now I know better but believe it or not, that is one of the reasons why you should join a support group. I know it sounds like a strange leap, but hear me out.

It was lonely and it got harder to find a reason to keep doing something that was healing for me. Knowing I was making a difference, was like a gift I gave myself. When you have PTSD and are doing the work alone, it is great but there comes a time when you need the positive feedback from others. Face it! We all have an ego. Feed your ego!

Think about it this way. If you were really overweight and put in a lot of work to lose it, but moved to a new town where no one knew you, they wouldn't know what you did or how hard you worked at it. Yet, if you went back to where people knew you, they would let you know how proud they were of you, congratulate you on it, and yes, feed your ego. It is like a gift you give yourself.

Being in a support group, gives you that positive feedback, support and inspires you to keep doing the work of healing. When you are healed, you can give that to others too, because you know what it was like when you did it, just as much as you remember what it was like to do it alone. That is a gift you give to others, but also, a gift you give to yourself.

On a personal note, I want to thank the people who stuck with me on Wounded Times, even if I don't know who you are. I am also grateful for the people passing on the work for PTSD Patrol. Reaching over 100,000 page views was because of you being willing to do that.
Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it!
#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Make Your Own Kind of Music

The Mamas and the Papas

Nobody can tell you

There's only one song worth singing

They may try and sell you

Cause it hangs them up

To see someone like you

But you gotta make your own kind of music

Sing your own special song

Make your own kind of music

Even if nobody else sings along

You're gonna be nowhere

The loneliest kind of lonely

It may be rough going

Just to do your thing is the hardest thing to do

But you gotta make your own kind of music

Sing your own special song

Make your own kind of music

Even if nobody else sings along

So if you cannot take my hand

And if you must be going, I will understand

You gotta make your own kind of music

Sing your own special song

Make your own kind of music

Even if nobody else sings along

You gotta make your own kind of music

Sing your own kind of song

Make your own kind of music

Even if nobody else sings along

You gotta make your own kind of music

Sing your own kind of song

Make your own kind of music

Even if nobody else sings along

No no no no

Even if nobody else sings along

If nobody else sings along

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Barry Mann / Cynthia Weil

Make Your Own Kind of Music lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Encourage healing #PTSD, not drinking

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
May 21, 2021

Did you know there is a difference between corruption and encouragement? Corruption is when you try to get someone to do something evil, wrong, bad for them or to go against what they believe. Encouragement is when you try to get someone to do something tat is good for them, something that will benefit them, especially when they want to give up.

If you have a friend dealing with PTSD, taking them out to a bar to drink their troubles away, is borderline corruption. Wanting them to get out of their isolation and off the couch, is a good thing but that is to where they should go to. Alcohol is a depressant and that is the last thing they need. It may make you feel more comfortable than taking them out for a cup of coffee and spend time with them that way, but this is supposed to be about them...not you.

More often than not, the person with PTSD survived something you may never understand and you may feel uncomfortable listing to them. It is way more uncomfortable if they lose their fight and end the battle by their own hands. Maybe they were the first or second person they called after it happened. You were there in the beginning but there before it. You know them. You'll be one of the first people to see the change in them but most of the time you don't know what it means. You won't until you spend time listening to them.

Do more listening than talking. Remember you are doing this for them. If you don't know what to say when they stop talking, then just put your arm on their shoulder, or nod your head. Don't look away from them or talk about something to fill up the quiet minutes. They may be struggling to find the right words or the courage to say what they need to.

This is why the featured video today is for King And Country, Fight On Fighter. Encouragement is a gift you give that can change a life for the better.

“Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be.”

― Ralph Waldo Emerson (Goodreads)

Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD 

Fight On, Fighter

for KING And COUNTRY

I was there on the day that you were changed

You were scared and prepared for the heartbreak

Everything you knew faded out of view

Stole a piece of you

If I could, oh, I would be a hero

Be the one who would take all the arrows

Save you from the pain, carry all the weight

But I know that you're brave

Fight on, fighter

Don't let anyone steal your fire

Fight on, fighter

The Spirit is alive inside ya, yeah

There's a part that you hold that you lock down

Let it breathe, give it wings, set it free now

Time to make ya walk, break the prison bars

Show them who you are

Fight on, fighter

Don't let anyone steal your fire

Fight on, fighter

The Spirit is alive inside ya, yeah

Stronger than you than you ever thought

I know you're stronger

Braver than you were before

You know you're braver

Oh, no, you don't have to be afraid

Together we'll face it

So don't ever stop no matter what

'Cause you're gonna make it

Fight on, fighter

Don't let anyone steal your fire

Fight on, fighter

The Spirit is alive inside ya, yeah

Fight on, fighter

Don't let anyone steal your fire

Fight on, fighter

The Spirit is alive inside ya, yeah

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Ben Backus / Ben Glover / Joel David Smallbone / Luke Smallbone / Mark Campbell / Tedd Tjornhom Fight On, Fighter lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc, Mike Curb Music 

Preventing too late

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
May 16, 2021

What if you could prevent "too late" from happening? Too late to say you're sorry from filling you with regret? Too late to say you love someone who may need to hear it? Or too late to let them know they matter to you, pick up the phone and call them or just be willing to listen to them?

What if you are the one who is thinking about ending the pain on your terms but instead of reaching out one more time to people who care about you, you decide to just keep it from them? You cannot change "it" when it is too late, but you can prevent it from happening.

Today the featured video is James Taylor, Fire And Rain. "Suzanne the plans they made put an end to you," is heartbreaking but what makes is sadder is when he sings, "but I always thought that I'd see you again."

It is something that stays with you the rest of your life and if you are the one who is like Suzanne, then you will leave that pain in people who may have changed your life, before your changed theirs to be filled with never ending questions they will never have answers for.

Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it! #BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Fire And Rain

James Taylor 

Just yesterday mornin', they let me know you were gone

Suzanne, the plans they made put an end to you

I walked out this morning and I wrote down this song

I just can't remember who to send it to

I've seen fire and I've seen rain

I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end

I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend

But I always thought that I'd see you again

Won't you look down upon me, Jesus?

You've got to help me make a stand

You've just got to see me through another day

My body's aching and my time is at hand

And I won't make it any other way

Oh, I've seen fire and I've seen rain

I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end

I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend

But I always thought that I'd see you again

Been walking my mind to an easy time

My back turned towards the sun

Lord knows, when the cold wind blows

It'll turn your head around

Well, there's hours of time on the telephone line

To talk about things to come

Sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground

Oh, I've seen fire and I've seen rain

I've seen sunny days that I thought would never end

I've seen lonely times when I could not find a friend

But I always thought that I'd see you, baby

One more time again, now

Thought I'd see you one more time again

There's just a few things coming my way this time around, now

Thought I'd see you, thought I'd see you, fire and rain, now

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Taylor James V

Fire And Rain lyrics © Emi Blackwood Music Inc., Country Road Music

Be the real friend I need

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
April 5, 2021

Today the featured video is Celtic Women, Walk Beside Me because that is a very powerful message when you are hurting. PTSD can do a lot of things to you but if you have someone walking beside you, it makes it hurt less. That is a gift they will never really understand but it is one that can save your future.

We've all been fed up with doom and gloom messages about how many take their own lives, leaving behind families with a lifetime of burden to carry. Just because they were not given the chance to help someone they loved they have to pay the price for the loss. We've heard it from friends wondering why someone they cared about would not tell them they were hurting and needed so help from them. What kind of a relationship is that? Families and friends are supposed to be people you trust. Do you trust them or not? Or is it more a matter of you not trusting yourself because you believe you are beyond help? Maybe it is because you don't think they will try to help you? Maybe you are ashamed you need help at all?

Whatever your reason is, or the one you use to prevent you from asking the people in your life to help save your life, it is pure bullshit! Stop making excuses and start making meaningful choices that will also touch the people in your life.

The only question you should be asking is if you could be the real friend they need and walk beside them...or not. How do you know they won't if you never give them the chance?

Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Walk Beside Me

Celtic Woman 

A child begins with one single step

Then walks a million miles

And though these wings are not ready yet

I will try to fly

My eyes can't see

My arms can't reach

I need strength when I'm weak

I need your faith in me

Don't walk in front of me

I was not born to follow

Don't walk behind me

We were all born to lead

Don't walk without me

I might need you tomorrow

Walk right beside me

Be the real friend I need

If you break small stones, one at a time

You will move that whole mountain

If you climb each rainbow, it's gold that you'll find

And shelter from the rain

My ears can't hear

My heart can't beat

It needs strength when I'm weak

I need your faith in me

Don't walk in front of me

I was not born to follow

Don't walk behind me

We were all born to lead

Don't walk without me

I might need you tomorrow

Walk right beside me

Be the real friend I need

Don't walk in front of me

I was not born to follow

Don't walk behind me

We were all born to lead

Don't walk without me

I might need you tomorrow

Walk right beside me

Be the real friend I need

Walk right beside me

Be the real friend I need

Source: Musixmatch

Walk Beside Me lyrics © Syncope Music Publishing, Out Of Pocket Prod. Ltd. 

find out how to #TakeBackYourLife from it

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
March 10, 2021

"Darling, somebody still loves you!" Isn't that such a nice thing to hear? If you have been abandoned by everyone you knew, knowing that, can make all the difference in your life. That is what you can find in a PTSD support group. You can find a professional who also cares about you by seeking out a trauma specialist.  PTSD is not the same as other illnesses because this one was caused by an outside force that hit you. When you read about PTSD from the MAYO Clinic, you can see how complicated it can be, but you can also find out how to #TakeBackYourLife from it.

Today the featured video is James Taylor, Her Town Too. It is about how people can be cruel and gossip about things they know nothing about. That happens all the time, but it happens a lot more when people change due to PTSD. It is hard for people to understand what it is like unless they are a survivor too. The thing is, you cannot control them. All you can do is stop them from hurting you even more. Shut them out of your life. The only power they have over you is what you allow them to have.

The best revenge is to heal and be happier! They'll notice the change in you and then it will be more about how happy you seem to be, how great you look and how they want to know how you did it...so they can change their own miserable outlook on life.

You get that from support groups, where someone cares about you and helps you up instead of making fun of the fact you fell apart. Where people will not just be glad to see the change in you, but grateful they had a chance to help you become happier. Then you can help pick others up too and be thrilled you helped change someone's life because you knew what they felt like...when it was your life too.

Somebody still love you!

Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Her Town Too

James Taylor 

She's been afraid to go out

She's afraid of the knock on her door

There's always a shade of a doubt

She can never be sure

Who comes to call

Maybe the friend of a friend of a friend

Anyone at all

Anything but nothing again

It used to be her town

It used to be her town, too

It used to be her town

It used to be her town, too

Seems like even her old girlfriends

Might be talking her down

She's got her name on the grapevine

Running up and down

The telephone line

Talking 'bout

Someone said, someone said

Something 'bout, something else

Someone might have said about her

She always figured that they were her friends

But maybe they can live without her

It used to be her town

It used to be her town, too

It used to be her town

It used to be her town, too

Well, people got used to seeing them both together

But now he's gone and life goes on

Nothing lasts forever, oh no

She gets the house and the garden

He gets the boys in the band

Some of them his friends

Some of them her friends

Some of them understand

Lord knows that this is just a small town city

Yes, and everyone can see you fall

It's got nothing to do with pity

I just wanted to give you a call

It used to be your town

It used to be my town, too

You never know 'till it all falls down

Somebody loves you

Somebody loves you

Darling, somebody still loves you

I can still remember

When it used to be her town, too

It used to be your town

It used to be my town, too

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: John David Souther / James Vernon Taylor / Waddy Wachtell

Her Town Too lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC 

rethink fighting PTSD alone

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
March 8, 2021 

If you are trying to get through what PTSD is doing to you alone, then consider this.

In the military, they are called Battle Buddy.

If hundreds of soldiers were talked out of that darkness because their squadmate became their best friend, I’ll forever argue its merit, no matter how goofy it sounds calling another grown-ass warfighter my “battle buddy.”

5 reasons why the battle buddy system was secretly brilliant, We Are The Mighty, Eric Milzarski

With the Department of Veterans Affairs, they are called Peer Support.

“When I began peer support, I was quiet, withdrawn, extremely habitual,” she recalled. “I wasn’t engaged in the community. But they told me someone is in there and we are going to give you the skills to bring her back.
“The beautiful thing about peer support is that there is no pressure. They allowed me to play the game, using old habits to mask and cope. It allowed me to know other Veterans are struggling. Peer support allowed me to put that on a shelf and be a human being again.”

Peer support specialists help Veterans in crisis VAntage Point, Coast Guard Veteran Lavinia Jackson

If you join any support group, someone is there for you. If not then you may call them your friend, spouse, family member, or anyone else who is there for you to turn to.

Why would you ever think you should fight this on your own? So many found strength leaning on someone when they needed it, then being there when someone else did!

Alcoholics Anonymous, gives people a sponsor. Support groups all have someone there to help others. This is all there because it works. If you are a veteran and you get arrested, most states have Veterans Courts, where someone is assigned to help you get what you need to have another chance to recover. Some prisons have units where they put veterans all in together because it is understood that most of the time, the trouble started with putting their lives on the line and they have support with them. 

This is why the featured video today is Melissa Manchester, Just You And I!

Now if you think you should still fight to heal PTSD alone, you might way to rethink that one because it is probably not working for you.  Time to find out what will!

Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from PTSD

Just You And I

Melissa Manchester 

When your heroes go up in a puff,

And there's not enough to hang on to

And the ones you would count on to call

They all fall down all around you

Then you've got to believe there's more

It is the reason we're put here for

It's just you and I

When the legend's over - and we have just begun

We can look to each other to see us through

Just you and I

When a miracle's long overdue

And there's no one who's gonna come to guide you

So you keep looking up to the sky - wondering why

The clouds won't hide you

At the times when you're most afraid

That is the reason why dreams are made

It's just you and I

When the legend's over - and we have just begun

We can look to each other to see us through

Just you and I

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Carole Bayer Sager / Melissa Manchester / Melissa Toni Manchester

Just You and I lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Carlin America Inc 

A newly reimagined recording of Melissa’s early hit, “Just You And I”
Melissa Manchester’s latest single, a newly reimagined recording of her early hit, “JUST YOU AND I” is a Labor Day Week tribute to the essential workers and first responders who are getting us all through the coronavirus crisis. The Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter is joined by legendary saxophonist Gerald Albright and the young artists from Citrus College in this updated version of the 1976 Billboard charted classic.

September 8th, 2020 

One of my old videos from 2006....

speed limit to healing

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
January 31, 2021

When someone is trying to heal from PTSD, they are the driver. It is up to them to set the speed they travel on this road. If you are trying to help them, you are the passenger and the navigator. Offering advice and trying to get them to keep going, is part of it but so is slowing them down when they go too fast.

A long time ago, I was helping a National Guardsman heal to prevent him from trying suicide for the 3rd time. It took 5 phone calls before he agreed to see a professional. I hadn't heard from him for a while but was talking to his Mom a few months later. I asked how he was doing and she said, "Well you cured him and he moved to Colorado." I told her that he was not cured and needed to get back home and back into theraphy. This didn't make sense to her at first, because the nightmares were just about gone and he was happier. I explained that could very well be true, but that didn't mean he was done.

The person needing healing is in control of the speed, but it is vital to the navigators to get them to ease up on the gas. The best way to put this is, on a highway, most of the drivers are doing it within limits set, or close to it. Sooner or later, some yahoo thinks limits are for everyone else but them, so they go zooming past everyone, weaving in and out of traffic, making the road dangerous for everyone else. Usually you'll see a police car with flashing lights going after them. Why? Because it is dangerous with a predictable bad outcome.

If you see a therapist, understand the client sets the speed they heal with. For some, they need to go very slow and carefully. For others, they talk so fast, it is hard to slow them down enough so they actually hear themselves talk.

This is why the feature video is Neil Diamond, He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother.

If you are trying to help someone, understand that you need to try to slow them down, get them to rest and refuel when they are running out of gas. Be there to guide them so they don't have to feel like they are alone on this road. 

Remember it is your life...get in and drive it!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

The road is long

With many a winding turn

That leads us to who knows where

Who knows where

But I'm strong

Strong enough to carry him

He ain't heavy, he's my brother

So on we go

His welfare is of my concern

No burden is he, to bear

We'll get there

For I know

He would not encumber me

He ain't heavy, he's my brother

If I'm laden at all

I'm laden with sadness

That everyone's heart

Isn't filled with the gladness

Of love for one another

It's a long, long road

From which there is no return

While we're on our way to there

Why not share

And the load

Doesn't weigh me down at all

He ain't heavy, he's my brother

He ain't heavy, he's my brother.

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Bob Russell / Bobby Scott

In case the above video gets blocked...this is the offical one.

There is a huge difference between being alone and being lonely

PTSD Patrol

Kathie Costos

January 19, 2020

There is a huge difference between being alone and being lonely. A lot of people are fine being alone. I don't know anyone who is OK with being lonely. That is why the featured video today is White Snake Here I Go Again.

When I lived in Florida, I was involved with a lot of groups. I did a lot for them, doing videos to give them publicity, supporting their events and talking with individual members to help them with their personal problems. The truth is, I never felt like I belonged. I was lonely in huge groups and it sucked.

The thing is, it made me feel like the only way to fit in was to sacrifice what I thought, what I believed and who I was. That is something I have never been willing to do...and never will.

I am involved in a lot of groups on Facebook and it turns out, a lot of people felt the same way. They felt as if they didn't belong anywhere, until they found groups of like minded people, where they could share their thoughts and be supported by others. Most of the time, the new comers to the groups, including me, felt grateful they found a place for them.

If you are struggling with PTSD, then you need to do the same. Find groups where you do feel welcome, just as you are. A place where the people there do what you to change, but only changing from fighting on your own to letting them help you fight to be happier. They are out there.

Groups where they will support you, help you, guide you and then one day, you can do the same for them. Places where the only goal is to help healing take over your life, as you want to live it.

I know what it is like to be alone and it is OK but no one should ever feel lonely when there are so many others out there. After all, that is the reason why I started working on PTSD almost 40 years ago...knowing you are not alone is the greatest gift you can give to yourself!

Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

I don't know where I'm goin'

But I sure know where I've been

Hanging on the promises in songs of yesterday

An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time

Here I go again, here I go again

Tho' I keep searching for an answer

I never seem to find what I'm looking for

Oh Lord, I pray you give me strength to carry on

'Cause I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams

Here I go again on my own

Goin' down the only road I've ever known

Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time

Just another heart in need of rescue

Waiting on love's sweet charity

An' I'm gonna hold on for the rest of my days

'Cause I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams

And here I go again on my own

Goin' down the only road I've ever known

Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time

But here I go again, here I go again,

Here I go again, here I go

'Cause I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams

Here I go again on my own

Goin' down the only road I've ever known

Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time

Here I go again on my own

Goin' down the only road I've ever known

Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

'Cause I know what it means to walk along the lonely street of dreams

Here I go again on my own

Goin' down the only road I've ever known

Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: David Coverdale / Bernie Marsden

Here I Go Again lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc 

I have a problem with the "fix you" part

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
Januray 9,2021

Today the feature song is Coldplay, Fix You. It is about when you want to help someone who is hurting. The lyrics are beautiful but I have a problem with the "fix you" part.

People tired to "fix me" after I survived multiple times. For a long time, I thought that love would "fix me" and people in my life thought they could. They tried to fix me after my ex-husband tried to kill me. Then I realized, I was the only one who could "fix me" and change.

That is how I knew my husband didn't need fixing. He needed support and for me to stand by him, encourage him and try to find the help he needed to fix his life. 

I've seen PTSD from both sides and trust me, when you love someone, you are in the best position possible to help them heal. Love alone cannot do it, but your time, patience, support, encouragement and being willing to fight for them, can give them what they need to start fighting for themselves too.

Those who do, are rewarded knowing that the person they love, is healing, happier and it is because of you!

If you have PTSD, remember, it is your life...get in and drive it! If you love someone with it, then help them do it!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Fix You

Coldplay 

When you try your best, but you don't succeed

When you get what you want but not what you need

When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep

Stuck in reverse

And the tears come streaming down your face

When you lose something, you can't replace

When you love someone, but it goes to waste

Could it be worse?

Lights will guide you home

And ignite your bones

And I will try to fix you

And high up above or down below

When you're too in love to let it go

But if you never try, you'll never know

Just what you're worth

Lights will guide you home

And ignite your bones

And I will try to fix you

Tears stream down your face

When you lose something, you cannot replace

Tears stream down your face and I

Tears stream down your face

I promise you, I will learn from my mistakes

Tears stream down your face and I

Lights will guide you home

And ignite your bones

And I will try to fix you

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Christopher Anthony John Martin / Guy Rupert Berryman / William Champion / Jonathan Mark Buckland

Fix You lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Mgb Ltd. 

Let The Sun Shine In

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
December 10, 2020

Worlds align this winter solstice: Look for Jupiter, Saturn in December skies

“Alignments between these two planets are rather rare, occurring once every 20 years or so, but this conjunction is exceptionally rare because of how close the planets will appear to one another,” Hartigan said.

“You’d have to go all the way back to just before dawn on March 4, 1226, to see a closer alignment between these objects visible in the night sky.”

Astronomers call what we'll witness on Dec. 21 a "conjunction." From asteroids or moons to planets and stars, a conjunction is when two objects in space appear to be close to each other as observed from Earth. In the reality of space, they're still hundreds of millions of miles apart.

Ever since I read that Jupiter and Saturn were going to align, I keep thinking about the 5th Dimension and Aquarius. In the song it is Jupiter and Mars but there is a part of the song that talks about friends walking away. 

If your friends walked away, they were not really your friends. Safe bet, if it you noticed one of your friends struggling with something, you'd ask them what is going on...let them know you were ready to listen and then offer to help them.

Struggling to heal PTSD can suck. It can feel as if you are doing it all alone. That is why you need to find a support group so you can be with people like you. Then you can not just find support and comfort, you can deliver it to them as well.

Let this next year be a new beginning for you when you let the sun shine in to replace the darkness you have been living with.

Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it.

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Aquarius / Let the Sunshine In

The 5th Dimension 

When the moon is in the Seventh House

And Jupiter aligns with Mars

Then peace will guide the planets

And love will steer the stars

This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius

Age of Aquarius

Aquarius

Aquarius

Harmony and understanding

Sympathy and trust abounding

No more falsehoods or derisions

Golden living dreams of visions

Mystic crystal revelation

And the mind's true liberation

Aquarius

Aquarius

When the moon is in the Seventh House

And Jupiter aligns with Mars

Then peace will guide the planets

And love will steer the stars

This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius

Age of Aquarius

Aquarius

Aquarius

Aquarius

Aquarius

Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in

Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in

Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in

Oh, let it shine, c'mon

Now everybody just sing along

Let the sun shine in

Open up your heart and let it shine on in

When you are lonely, let it shine on

Got to open up your heart and let it shine on in

And when you feel like you've been mistreated

And your friends turn away

Just open your heart, and shine it on in

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: James Rado / Gerome Ragni / Galt Mac Dermot

Aquarius / Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures) lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC 

PTSD Patrol Don't Leave Them Waiting There

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
November 2, 2020

Today the feature video is Paul McCartney, The Long And Winding Road. I chose this song because there are a lot of people who are hurting and giving up on finding hope. You may know someone like that. Someone who has been through a lot in their life, so much so, you have noticed the changes in them. You may see someone who used to be very happy and caring, but after something happened to them, they changed, and this caused you to suspect they have PTSD.

Surviving a traumatic event is the only way PTSD can strike them. Sometimes is hits them fast and hard. Other times, like when they have a dangerous job, it piles up little by little. For others, it comes many years later. 

For many, they spent their lives keeping busy, but when they retire, the extra time to think, allows PTSD to wake up. It isn't as if it just got into them. They have been carrying it for years but "stuffed it" or "pushed through it" yet with retirement, they have nothing else to occupy their minds.

Many times I've been alone

And many times I've cried

Anyway, you'll never know

The many ways I've tried

And still they lead me back

To the long winding road

You left me standing here

A long, long time ago

Don't leave me waiting here

Lead me to your door

Spend some time with them. Listen to them so you can figure out what they need and then help them find it. If they just need someone to talk to, listen. If they need professional help, go online and try to find it for them. Learn what you can about PTSD, what it is and why they have it so they do not feel so hopeless or think they are weak in any way.

Sometimes, just listening to them can make all the difference in the world to them because you let them know they matter and are worth your time.

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

The long and winding road

That leads to your door

Will never disappear

I've seen that road before

It always leads me here

Lead me to you door

The wild and windy night

That the rain washed away

Has left a pool of tears

Crying for the day

Why leave me standing here?

Let me know the way

Many times I've been alone

And many times I've cried

Anyway, you'll never know

The many ways I've tried

And still they lead me back

To the long winding road

You left me standing here

A long, long time ago

Don't leave me waiting here

Lead me to your door

But still they lead me back

To the long winding road

You left me standing here

A long, long time ago

Don't keep me waiting here

Lead me to your door

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: John Lennon / Paul McCartney

The Long and Winding Road lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

PTSD Patrol here in the land of hope and dreams

PTSD Pattol
Kathie Costos
October 28, 2020

If anyone is telling you that you cannot have a happier life...they are lying to you. Some people want to just take hope away because it makes them feel better about themselves.

If anyoe is telling you that you deserve to be miserable...they are lying to you. Some people want to make sure that if they are not happy, no one else is.

I get so tired of hearing people say all kinds of things to push people down instead of help them up. I know in my own life, everytime I was losing the ability to see any hope, someone came along to make me feel better, and give me hope that things would be better. They help me feel better because it helped them feel better doing it. Even now, I feel better doing whatever I can to make life better for people I don't know. It is healing for me. If it wasn't, then I would still be doing it after almost 40 years.

Today, the feature video is Bruce Springsteen LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS

That is where you are right now. There is no time to sit back and work on hiding your pain, because you need to be working on healing and being happier, There is no time to feel sorry you survived when you need to be helping someone else heal too. That is how it works in this world of hope and dreams.

We are here to help build futures, not leave someone stuck in the past. You cannot change a damn thing that happened before right now, but you can change what comes in the next moment.

The question is, which kind of person do you want to be? The kind who wants someone else to be miserable because you are, or do you want to be the kind of person who wants to help someone to feel better about themselves...because it makes you feel better too?

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Oh oh this train, I'm riding this train

Don't you wanna ride 

(This train)

Oh get on, get on (this train)

Grab your ticket and your suitcase

Thunder's rolling down the tracks

You don't know where you're goin' now

But you know you won't be back

Darlin' if you're weary

Lay your head upon my chest

We'll take what we can carry

And we'll leave the rest

Where sunlight streams

Meet me in a land of hope and dreams

I will provide for you

And I'll stand by your side

You'll need a good companion

For this part of the ride

Leave behind your sorrows

Let this day be the last

Tomorrow there'll be sunshine

And all this darkness past

Big wheels roll through fields

Where sunlight streams

Meet me in a land of hope and dreams

This train carries saints and sinners

This train carries losers and winners

This train carries whores and gamblers

This train carries lost souls

I said, this train dreams will not be thwarted

This train faith will be rewarded

This train hear the steel wheels singin'

This train bells of freedom ringin'

This train carries saints and sinners

This train carries losers and winners

This train carries whores and gamblers

This train carries lost souls

I said, this train carries broken-hearted

This train thieves and sweet souls departed

This train carries fools and kings

This train, all aboard

I said, this train dreams will not be thwarted

This train faith will be rewarded

This train hear the steel wheels singin'

This train bells of freedom ringin'

Come on this train

People get ready

You don't need no ticket

All you got do is just get on board 

On board this train

This train, people get ready

You don't need no ticket (oh I know you don't)

You don't need no ticket you just get on board (people get ready) 

You just thank the Lord (people get ready)

Come on this train (people get ready)

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Bruce Springsteen / Curtis Mayfield

Land of Hope and Dreams lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc 

Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band - Land of Hope and Dreams (Live in New York City)

PTSD Patrol what are friends for?

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
October 25, 2020

What are friends for? Some people will point to their Facebook "friends" and say they have thousands. Well, I know a lot of people, but I only have a few I would call friend. Most people will say that same thing when they are being honest.

Is a friend someone who will help you move? Or would they say, "let me know what your new address is" because they want to send you a Christmas card?

Is a friend someone who will go to the store for you when you are not well, or do they tell you can get delivery?

Is a friend someone who will spend time with you, listen to you when you are depressed or lonely...or do they tell you to call them when you are feeling better?

So how many can you call friend now? Can they call you friend when they need someone to be there for them? That is what friends are for.

When they have PTSD, they are feeling as if they do not deserve anyone to care about them. That feeling grows deeper the longer it goes on and more people turn away from them. Are you reenforcing that by letting their calls go to voice mail? Are you feeding it by telling them you are tired of hearing the same story over and over again and it is time for them to "get over it" no matter what it is?

Real friends are there in bad times, as well as good ones. They are there to make you feel as if you matter to them. If your friend is hurting, then let them know they do matter to you! #BreakTheSilence and tell them you'll be there to help them #TakeBackYourLife for as long as it takes!

And I never thought I'd feel this way

And as far as I'm concerned

I'm glad I got the chance to say

That I do believe, I love you

And if I should ever go away

Well, then close your eyes and try

To feel the way we do today

And then if you can remember

Keep smiling, keep shining

Knowing you can always count on me, for sure

That's what friends are for

For good times and bad times

I'll be on your side forever more

That's what friends are for

Well, you came in loving me

And now there's so much more I see

And so by the way

I thank you

Oh and then for the times when we're apart

Well, then close your eyes and know

The words are coming from my heart

And then if you can remember

Keep smiling and keep shining

Knowing you can always count on me, for sure

That's what friends are for

In good times and bad times

I'll be on your side forever more

That's what friends are for

Keep smiling, keep shining

Knowing you can always count on me, for sure

That's what friends are for

For good times and bad times

I'll be on your side forever more

That's what friends are for

Keep smiling, keep shining

Knowing you can always count on me, for sure

Cause I tell you, that's what friends are for

Whoa, good times and the bad times

I'll be on your side forever more

That's what friends are for

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Burt F Bacharach / Carole Bayer Sager / Burt Bacharach / Carol Bayer Sager

That's What Friends Are For lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc, BMG Rights Management, Royalty Network 

PTSD Patrol Remember what happiness was?

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
October 19, 2020

How many times have you heard "misery loves company" and wondered what that was supposed to mean? It isn't as if people love to be around other people. For some, it does mean they are so miserable, they want others to feel the same way. We have to face the fact that there are very selfish people in this world. For most people, it is more of wanting to be around others who know what it feels like.

Healing PTSD is like that. When you are around others who have experienced something few others do, you can find comfort being with them and gain strength from the pain you share. You gain a new understanding and inspiration from hearing about someone else who struggled but stands as an example of what is possible when healing happens.

Today's song was one I almost didn't use because it is a sad song. Barbra Streisand Memory is beautiful and her incredible voice gets into your soul, but I thought it may be too sad. As I listened to it, I found comfort in the lyrics. 

I can smile happy your days (I can dream of the old days)

Life was beautiful then

I remember the time I knew what happiness was

Let the memory live again

You can remember what happiness was too and smile. You can remember what it was like when you were not so sad and can find good memories to hang onto. Nothing will ever be the same as it was before "IT" hit you hard...but that doesn't mean that as to be bad. It can all be different and still be good!

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

Midnight

Not a sound from the pavement

Has the moon lost her memory

She is smiling alone

In the lamplight

The withered leaves collect at my feet

And the wind begins to moan

Memory

All alone in the moonlight

I can smile happy your days (I can dream of the old days)

Life was beautiful then

I remember the time I knew what happiness was

Let the memory live again

Every street lamp seems to beat

A fatalistic warning

Someone mutters and the street lamp gutters

And soon it will be morning

Daylight

I must wait for the sunrise

I must think of a new life

And I mustn't give in

When the dawn comes

Tonight will be a memory too

And a new day will begin

Burnt out ends of smoky days

The still cold smell of morning

A street lamp dies, another night is over

Another day is dawning

Touch me,

It is so easy to leave me

All alone with the memory

Of my days in the sun

If you touch me,

You'll understand what happiness is

Look, a new day has begun

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Andrew Lloyd Webber / Trevor Nunn / T.S. Eliot / Zdenek Hruby

Memory lyrics © Songtrust Ave 

PTSD Patrol he ain't heavy

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
October 9, 2020

Today the feature video is the Hollies, He Ain't Heavy...He's my brother. The song is about taking care of someone who matters to you. That is what friends are supposed to do for one another. Sharing burdens, as much as they are share joys. When you have PTSD, it can be hard at times to open up and ask for help, even when you are with someone you trusted to a point. Just remember that if they really are your friend, they will listen, support you, and do whatever they can to help you on your road to recovery. It doesn't have to be such a lonely road for you. By now you should know enough about PTSD to be able to explain it to someone who does not know what it is.Trust they enough to ask for help and ask them to just listen. Real friends always will. #BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

The road is long

With many a winding turn

That leads us to who knows where

Who knows where

But I'm strong

Strong enough to carry him

He ain't heavy, he's my brother

So on we go

His welfare is of my concern

No burden is he to bear

We'll get there

For I know

He would not encumber me

He ain't heavy, he's my brother

If I'm laden at all

I'm laden with sadness

That everyone's heart

Isn't filled with the gladness

Of love for one another

It's a long, long road

From which there is no return

While we're on the way to there

Why not share

And the load

Doesn't weigh me down at all

He ain't heavy he's my brother

He's my brother

He ain't heavy, he's my brother, he ain't heavy

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Bob Russell / Bobby Scott 

PTSD Patrol I'll Stand By You

PTSD Patrol
Kathie Costos
October 6, 2020



Today the feature video is the Pretenders I'll Stand By You. That is something a lot of people are looking for, especially when politics have turned people you thought were your friends into enemies. I have never been attacked so much in my life, than the last few months and by people I did a lot for. 

When you have PTSD, it could be people you know turning their back on you, and you think you do not matter. The thing is, you do matter and there are a lot of people who will stand by you.

Find people in the same situation, people who will listen to you, help you and stand by you. They do exist.

#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD

I do not regret doing things for those who turned against me. If I did not help them, I would have gone against myself and all I believed was the right thing to do. What they did in return is their problem, not mine. I know as a Christian, I will have to account for my actions one day, and so will they.

If you are doing things for the right reasons, keep doing them. If you are telling the truth, keep telling the truth. If you have peace within your soul when we do something good, remember that, because they will never know what that feels like!

The Pretenders

I'll Stand By You

Oh, why you look so sad, the tears are in your eyes,

Come on and come to me now, and don't be ashamed to cry,

Let me see you through, 'cause I've seen the dark side too.

When the night falls on you, you don't know what to do,

Nothing you confess could make me love you less,

I'll stand by you,

I'll stand by you, won't let nobody hurt you,

I'll stand by you

So if you're mad, get mad, don't hold it all inside,

Come on and talk to me now.

Hey there, what you got to hide?

I get angry too, well, I'm alive like you.

When you're standing at the cross roads,

And don't know which path to choose,

Let me come along, 'cause even if you're wrong

I'll stand by you,

I'll stand by you, won't let nobody hurt you,

I'll stand by you.

Baby, even to your darkest hour, and I'll never desert you,

I'll stand by you.

And when, when the night falls on you baby,

You're feeling all a lone, you're wandering on your own,

I'll stand by you.

I'll stand by you, won't let nobody hurt you,

I'll stand by you, baby even to your darkest hour,

And I'll never desert you,

I'll stand by you,

I'll stand by you.

I'll stand by you, won't let nobody hurt you,

I'll stand by you, baby even to your darkest hour,

And I'll never desert you

I'll stand by you

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Thomas Kelly / Christine Hynde / Billy Steinberg

I'll Stand by You lyrics © BMG Rights Management