Honoring the Invisible Wounds: Understanding PTSD This Memorial Day

Dr. Sambunaris & Associates, Your Alpharetta Psychiatrist: Recognizing the Hidden Cost of Service

Memorial Day is a time for remembrance. We gather with family, raise flags, and pause to honor the men and women who gave their lives in service to our country. But for many veterans, first responders, and the families who love them, the last Monday in May carries a different kind of weight. Behind the ceremonies and cookouts are people quietly carrying invisible wounds, the kind that don’t show up in photographs or fade with time. As a trusted Alpharetta psychiatrist, Dr. Sambunaris & Associates believe that understanding these wounds is the first step toward healing them.

Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, doesn’t discriminate. It affects combat veterans who have seen the worst of war, police officers who respond to tragedy on their darkest shifts, firefighters who run toward danger, and EMTs who hold strangers’ hands in their final moments. It also affects the spouses, children, and parents who stand beside them.

This Memorial Day, we want to take a moment to look beyond the surface and explore what PTSD really looks like, why this season can be so painful, and how we can offer the kind of support that truly matters.

PTSD in Combat Veterans Looks Different Than Most People Think

Hollywood often portrays PTSD as dramatic flashbacks and explosive reactions. While those experiences are real for some, the truth is usually quieter. Many veterans live with constant hypervigilance, scanning rooms, sitting with their backs to walls, sleeping lightly. Others struggle with emotional numbness, finding it hard to connect with the people they love most.

Nightmares, irritability, guilt over what they did or didn’t do, and a deep sense of isolation are all common. These symptoms can surface years, even decades, after service ends.

First Responders Carry Their Own Kind of Trauma

Police officers, firefighters, paramedics, and dispatchers face traumatic events as part of their regular workday. Unlike combat, which has a defined deployment, first responders return to the same scenes again and again. Over time, this repeated exposure can lead to what some clinicians call complex or cumulative PTSD.

Signs may include difficulty sleeping, increased use of alcohol, withdrawal from family activities, sudden anger, or a growing sense that “no one understands.” Many first responders feel they have to stay strong for their teams and their communities, which can make asking for help feel impossible.

Families Feel It Too

PTSD doesn’t stay contained within one person. Spouses often describe walking on eggshells, never sure what will trigger a difficult day. Children may sense tension without understanding it, sometimes blaming themselves for it. Parents of service members and first responders carry their own worry and grief.

This experience, sometimes called secondary traumatic stress, is real and deserves attention. Families heal best when they heal together, with space for everyone’s feelings to be heard.

Memorial Day Can Be Especially Hard

For someone with PTSD, Memorial Day can stir up complicated emotions. Survivor’s guilt may rise to the surface as veterans remember friends who didn’t come home. Fireworks, crowded events, and even patriotic music can become triggers. First responders may think of partners lost in the line of duty.

Families may feel torn between celebrating and grieving. Recognizing that this weekend is layered, not just festive, is an act of compassion in itself.

Meaningful Support Goes Beyond Parades and Barbecues

Honoring those who served means more than thanking them for their service. It means showing up in quiet, consistent ways. Ask how someone is really doing and be willing to listen without trying to fix. Respect their limits if crowds or loud events are too much for them.

Check in the week after Memorial Day, when the public attention fades, but the feelings remain. Learn about local support resources for veterans and first responders. Most importantly, remind the people in your life that they don’t have to carry this alone.

Reaching Out for Help Is a Sign of Strength

There is still a quiet stigma around mental health, especially in communities built on service and toughness. But seeking help from a psychiatric professional is not a weakness. It is one of the bravest, most practical steps a person can take. Modern, evidence-based treatments for PTSD, anxiety, and depression are more effective than ever.

With the right support, people do get better. They sleep again. They laugh again. They reconnect with the people they love. No one should have to white-knuckle their way through life because they think reaching out makes them less of a soldier, officer, or parent. It doesn’t. It makes them human.

You Don’t Have to Walk This Road Alone: Talk to an Alpharetta Psychiatrist Who Understands, Dr. Sambunaris & Associates

As we honor those who have served this Memorial Day, Dr. Sambunaris & Associates extends a heartfelt thank you to the veterans of our community. As an Army veteran myself, I bring both personal understanding and professional expertise to my work with fellow service members.

I am proud to support the veteran community of North Fulton and Alpharetta, GA, offering compassionate, informed care to those navigating the lasting effects of service, including PTSD. If you or a loved one is a veteran seeking support, my team is here to help. Angelo Sambunaris, MD

This Memorial Day let us remember those who gave everything, as well as those who came home carrying wounds we cannot see. If you or someone you love is struggling with PTSD, anxiety, or depression connected to military service, first response work, or the ripple effects on family life, please know that compassionate help is available.

As an experienced Alpharetta psychiatrist practice, Dr. Sambunaris & Associates is here to listen without judgment or pressure. You can reach out to our team whenever you are ready.

Healing Is Possible, And You Don’t Have To Take The First Step Alone.

Contact Us Now To Schedule Your Consultation

How To Deal With Depression: Understanding What You’re Feeling And Where To Start

Depression is more than just feeling sad or having a bad day. It is a real medical condition that can affect how you think, feel, and function in daily life. If you are searching for how to deal with depression, it often means something does not feel right, and you are looking for answers. That is a meaningful first step. You are not alone, and there are ways to feel better. (more…)

The Vicious Cycle: How Anxiety Fuels Insomnia (and Keeps You Awake at Night)

Is Insomnia a Symptom of Anxiety?

For many people, bedtime is meant to be a moment of relief. A chance to finally slow down after a long day. But when you are living with anxiety, the opposite can happen. The lights go out, everything gets quiet, and suddenly your mind feels louder than ever. Thoughts start racing. Your body feels tight and restless. You want to sleep, you need to sleep, but it just will not come. So, the question you may be asking at 2 am – “Is insomnia a symptom of anxiety?” (more…)

Halloween

The fall brings many of our favorite things: piles of brightly colored leaves, apple cider with donuts, and cooler temperatures that allow us to turn off our air conditioners finally! But for many, the spooky season of Halloween time only highlights the nightmares that interfere with sleep and quality of life. Today we examine the relationship between anxiety and the nighttime disturbances of nightmares and night sweats.

Nightmares and anxiety

If you have frequent nightmares, you have parasomnia — a type of sleep disorder that includes unwanted disturbances while you’re falling asleep, during sleep or when you’re waking up. Nightmares and bad dreams are overlapping and common forms of parasomnia. Nightmares can be thought of as “vivid, disturbing, or frightening dreams that cause a startled awakening (Levin & Nielsen, 2007)”, and bad dreams are “very disturbing dreams which, though being unpleasant, do not cause the dreamer to awaken” (Robert & Zadra, 2008).

An anxiety dream falls under this umbrella as well; it is any dream that causes stress or distress. You might feel panicked or nervous during the dream, but often these feelings continue even when you wake up or worse, linger on during your day.

Although nightmares often inspire feelings of terror more intense than general anxiety, these also count as anxiety dreams, since anxiety during the day can make nightmares more likely. Nightmares can be triggered by many factors outside of anxiety including trauma (such as an accident or other events), irregular sleep cycles/schedule, some medications, substance abuse and/or withdrawal, and other medical conditions such as depression, heart disease or cancer.

However, the primary cause of nightmares is stress or anxiety. Sometimes, the ordinary stresses of daily life, such as a conflict at work or school can trigger a nightmare. A major life change, such as a move or the death of a loved one, can have the same effect. Experiencing anxiety is associated with a greater risk of nightmares.

How does anxiety trigger nightmares?

As you might already know, your brain remains active while you sleep. The brain uses this time to carry out critical functions required to refresh your body and optimize your brain function during your waking hours. Part of this process that happens when you sleep includes encoding experiences and sensations into memory and organizing all that data, much like a filing system.

It follows, then, that if your recent thoughts and feelings cause stress and fear, your dreams will likely follow a similar pattern. Not everyone living with anxiety will have bad dreams, but research does suggest anxiety can play a significant part in nighttime distress.

In a 2014 study, those who met criteria for generalized anxiety disorder had more bad dreams than participants who didn’t have anxiety. Bad dream frequency was significantly associated with depression, anxiety, worry, and poor quality of life. The study also showed that bad dreams led to greater daytime feelings of anxiety and depression and lower quality of life. In short, anxiety, and nightmares can feed into each other, creating an unpleasant cycle.

Night sweats and anxiety

Night sweats are something you probably recognize if you are experiencing them, but clinically it is defined as being flushed, very hot, and sweating for no apparent reason. This can happen when trying to rest, go to sleep, or when waking up, even though the room temperature is normal or cool. There may be a medical reason for your night sweats your body fighting off a virus or bacteria. What’s more, night sweats can be caused by perimenopause, menopause, the aftereffects of menopause, or by other hormonal problems. Night sweats can come and go infrequently, occur on a regular basis, or go on every night for what seems to be indefinitely.

Anxiety night sweats may precede, accompany, or follow an escalation of other anxiety sensations and symptoms (things like nervousness, anxiety, fear, and elevated stress) or occur with no obvious trigger. It can also come in waves, where it’s strong one moment and eases off the next.

Why does anxiety cause night sweats?

In short, an over-active mind causes the physical symptoms associated with night sweats. Your stress response in your head causes a physical response in your body including changing your body’s metabolism, respiration, and perspiration. This response is why the heart beats harder and faster, breathing becomes shorter and shallower, and we sweat.

Experiencing night sweats is a common consequence of a stressed or anxious mind, and an indication of how the body can mismanage itself based on our mental state. When the nervous system is healthy, it manages these systems and functions normally and invisibly for the most part. But when the nervous system becomes hyper-stimulated on a regular basis, the body is more apt to move from “thinking to feeling” in a shorter time span – a type of muscle memory if you will. Nightmares and the stress responses they trigger can also be a cause, or part of the circle of night sweats.

What to do if you are experiencing nightmares or night sweats on a regular basis

It’s always wise to seek support if your symptoms begin affecting your work, relationships, or overall quality of life. The best way to combat the negative effects of anxiety is to prevent them in the first place! Dr. Sambunaris suggests changing your sleep habits first:

Create an atmosphere that is conducive to great sleep. Build in time to wind down that includes taking a warm shower, banning screen time and devices, and/or reading a book. Keep the lights low, the temperature cool, and sounds to a minimum.
Once you’re in bed, let your mind wander to positive thoughts like going to your own “happy place,” positive things about your day, or expressing gratitude for the people in your life.
Make time for exercise during the day – studies have shown that even just 30 minutes of moderate aerobic activity during your day may help you sleep better.
Avoid caffeine and other stimulants during the day (or at least after lunch) to give your brain the best chance of relaxing at night.

If you have tried all of these suggestions, and you still find that your sleep disturbances are affecting your quality of life, it’s time to talk to a physician like Dr. Sambunaris who specializes in anxiety disorders. Recurrent or long-lasting stress and anxiety could be a sign of a more serious mental health issue that will not go away on its own. Make an appointment to get a clear diagnosis of what is keeping you up at night by calling 770-817-9200.

Sources: https://mayocl.in/3SUZcvI https://bit.ly/3ejLLGH https://bit.ly/3RStBtc

Author Angelo Sambunaris, M.D.

Meridian, ID