Growing older with post-traumatic stress disorder

Introduction: Ageing with mental illness is a neglected area of research and policy. People who grow older to later life with ongoing mental health problems may not have their needs well understood. This understanding is important if mental health services are to ensure direct or indirect age discrimination is avoided. Aim: This paper aims to explore issues relating to later life and ageing with mental illness focused on the story of Bernard (who was 84 years of age at the time of writing) who lived with a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Method: The paper is co-authored by Bernard and the researcher he originally told his story to as a participant in a biographical research study exploring mental ill health through the life course. In the original research study, Bernard completed a curriculum vitae (CV) of his life which informed two personalised interviews. An edited version of this is presented in this paper. Implications for practice are discussed in the context of life course, recovery, self-help and preventing suicide. The narrative illustrates how time, memory and meaning interweave and how ageing with mental illness become part of a person's ongoing identity.