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hp1195's Top (1) Replies by other users' votes

• (1 vote) Ever had a friend go through a public scandal?
  

  I was a whistleblower involving a very serious national security matter that happened about ten years ago. I also worked for a college that was supporting people here illegally involved in this event. It ruined my life and my health. I have PTSD and agoraphobia now and these illnesses are nearly impossible to battle.
  
  I stayed at work for 5 years and helped high level government officials by giving them information. I also was used by a newspaper reporter as a source and he fed me a bunch of BS, caused me to break up with my boyfriend and when he got a promotion because of me, stopped helping me. After the story blew over, no one cared except me. And this, again, was involving a major national security event about ten years ago. I am home disabled, too sick to leave my house, and lost the ability to be close to anyone or trust anyone.
  
  Here are my recommendations: Do not say a single word to anyone at work. They already know. For all you know, the CEO may be a drunk and hired his drunk friends. I went all the way to the president of my college and he did not care. People resigned over this. People were fired and demoted. But, my life was the one that was ruined just for doing the right thing. They acted as if they wanted to be helpful and follow the laws. But they didn’t. They waited until the “story” was over and then they began giving me bad evaluations. I live in a state close to Nebraska. They have very similar whistleblower laws. Good luck getting an attorney to help you. They do not win these cases because most people just do not care. I had an attorney tell me “let me know when they fire you and THEN we can do something.” I lived through abuse and hell for years and then when they fired me after building up a false negative employment history for two years, he said, “Oh you didn’t have a contract. Sorry.” I could not sleep, I lot weight, I had to have my home watched by the police for months. This was a very big deal and NO ONE CARED.
  
  My best advice: Contact OSHA and anonymously report safety issues involving intoxicated people operating heavy machinery. Then, AND THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THEING: Get out of there. Start applying for new jobs now. Try to get to another campus. Try to get to another college or university in the area. Try to apply for other state jobs. But, get out now. Keep your references intact. After you have another job, THEN start contacting more federal and state agencies if you want to do the right thing. But, get yourself out. I had heard of PTSD. But I had no idea that it is a terror that will take over your mind and ruin your life.
  
  The laws in this country are not helpful to working people. And by the time your employer is finished with you, their high dollar attorney will make it look like you were the worst employee in the world and they will fool any jury. And your fellow employees will scatter like rats. I commend you for your courage thus far. It takes a different kind of person to want people to do the right thing. But, unfortunately, most people do not do the right thing and they don’t care if you do….not in this type of environment.
  
  Do not tell anyone what you are doing at all at work. Not even someone you think is your best friend. Speak to no one else. Get another job and/or report this information to the authorities
  
  - written 1 year, 10 months ago – voted for by Chunkymoves

Last 5 Replies – All 9 replies »

• i worked at the university of nebraska medical center in the grounds department for four years.
  

  Wow! Chev-jame, Thank you so much! I am not too familiar with this forum and I just saw I had a message here. I cry every day. No medication helps. Thank you so much for validating and encouraging me. The ten year anniversary of the culmination of my nightmare is close and on that day, everyone feels it. But I know things about it that I relive every day of the year. Thank you again. Another human thanking me for it is something I have not experienced.
  - written 1 year, 9 months ago

• Ever had a friend go through a public scandal?
  

  Most people just don’t care at all. The ones who were doing the wrong things will malign you because they are not nice people. And other people forget the incident….even if it was a big, scary deal in the news. I had one therapist who heard my story and told SHE was scared after hearing it. PTSD is absolutely horrible. It takes over neurons in your brain and makes your body ready to freak out all day and all night. In my situation, I stayed on the job for five years being harassed afterwards. By the time I was too far gone, I thought it was normal to look for escape routes everywhere you went. I have lost my family and almost all of my friends. I have to “caring people” who help me out by listening most days. With PTSD and the terror involved, you relive it over and over again. You want to repeat things over and over and you think about what you could have done differently. You hate yourself and you hate your brain because it can not let go. I had a horrible nightmare just last night about a work place I was fired from over five years ago because of being a whistleblower. Whistleblowers start out strong and then we feel like the weakest, most naive idiots on earth. All of our stories should be told. But I am very afraid to tell mine. It puts a target on my back. There are probably things your friends doesn’t even remember, except subconsciously, if it was very dangerous. I “forgot” one very scary part of it until months later. That was my first clue of dissociation. And none of the medicine works that well.
  
  I will tell you something that you can do for your old friend. If someone did this for me, I would feel cared for and reminded that I had a courage beyond belief during that time. Send him a book or some kind of gift certificate anonymously. You don’t have to get caught up in the draining trap of another person’s PTSD, but you can make their month by remembering their courage anonymously.
  
  The best help I have received is the latest book about trauma by Dr. Peter Levine. I have it in another room. It is something like “The Voice With….Surviving Trauma.” This was the first book I have read over all of this time that told me I am not crazy and that my brain and my body have been changed forever by what I went through. He explains it so well and he has exercises that I recorded for myself and do every day. It has made a difference. And this forum is making a difference. Thank you for taking the time to validate. Here’s to all of the many unheard, unseen whistleblowers out there. Doing the right thing is not easy. But if it is inside us, we are very unique and we have to know it if others can’t. If someone sent me a note, a gift certificate for Amazon with the title of that book mentioned and mentioned that they have not forgotten my courage, I would cry with relief that someone remembered instead of feeling like a dead person trapped in my home. Just an idea for you. Thank you for listening.
  - written 1 year, 9 months ago

• Ever had a friend go through a public scandal?
  

  i’ve had enough of foreigner and christians. One was the culprit and one watched it happen and didn’t seem to have the “faith” I did to do the right thing. Thanks anyway. But, my advice is the best to any future whistleblowers because you don’t know you are developing PTSD until it is way to late. Gather evidence, Get out and THEN report to every agency and go to the news anonymously.
  - written 1 year, 9 months ago

• Hey, any philosophers out there?
  

  I was a whistleblower involving a very serious national security matter that happened about ten years ago. I also worked for a college that was supporting people here illegally involved in this event. It ruined my life and my health. I have PTSD and agoraphobia now and these illnesses are nearly impossible to battle.
  
  I stayed at work for 5 years and helped high level government officials by giving them information. I also was used by a newspaper reporter as a source and he fed me a bunch of BS, caused me to break up with my boyfriend and when he got a promotion because of me, stopped helping me. After the story blew over, no one cared except me. And this, again, was involving a major national security event about ten years ago. I am home disabled, too sick to leave my house, and lost the ability to be close to anyone or trust anyone.
  
  Here are my recommendations: Do not say a single word to anyone at work. They already know. For all you know, the CEO may be a drunk and hired his drunk friends. I went all the way to the president of my college and he did not care. People resigned over this. People were fired and demoted. But, my life was the one that was ruined just for doing the right thing. They acted as if they wanted to be helpful and follow the laws. But they didn’t. They waited until the “story” was over and then they began giving me bad evaluations. I live in a state close to Nebraska. They have very similar whistleblower laws. Good luck getting an attorney to help you. They do not win these cases because most people just do not care. I had an attorney tell me “let me know when they fire you and THEN we can do something.” I lived through abuse and hell for years and then when they fired me after building up a false negative employment history for two years, he said, “Oh you didn’t have a contract. Sorry.” I could not sleep, I lot weight, I had to have my home watched by the police for months. This was a very big deal and NO ONE CARED.
  
  My best advice: Contact OSHA and anonymously report safety issues involving intoxicated people operating heavy machinery. Then, AND THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THEING: Get out of there. Start applying for new jobs now. Try to get to another campus. Try to get to another college or university in the area. Try to apply for other state jobs. But, get out now. Keep your references intact. After you have another job, THEN start contacting more federal and state agencies if you want to do the right thing. But, get yourself out. I had heard of PTSD. But I had no idea that it is a terror that will take over your mind and ruin your life.
  
  The laws in this country are not helpful to working people. And by the time your employer is finished with you, their high dollar attorney will make it look like you were the worst employee in the world and they will fool any jury. And your fellow employees will scatter like rats. I commend you for your courage thus far. It takes a different kind of person to want people to do the right thing. But, unfortunately, most people do not do the right thing and they don’t care if you do….not in this type of environment.
  
  Do not tell anyone what you are doing at all at work. Not even someone you think is your best friend. Speak to no one else. Get another job and/or report this information to the authorities.
  
  Whistleblowers have NO ego at all. We don’t even think of anything but saving lives or preventing a horrific thing from happening. We lose EVERYTHING for doing the right thing.
  - written 1 year, 10 months ago

• I am a former policeman and I NEED BACKUP!
  

  I was a whistleblower involving a very serious national security matter that happened about ten years ago. I also worked for a college that was supporting people here illegally involved in this event. It ruined my life and my health. I have PTSD and agoraphobia now and these illnesses are nearly impossible to battle.
  
  I stayed at work for 5 years and helped high level government officials by giving them information. I also was used by a newspaper reporter as a source and he fed me a bunch of BS, caused me to break up with my boyfriend and when he got a promotion because of me, stopped helping me. After the story blew over, no one cared except me. And this, again, was involving a major national security event about ten years ago. I am home disabled, too sick to leave my house, and lost the ability to be close to anyone or trust anyone.
  
  Here are my recommendations: Do not say a single word to anyone at work. They already know. For all you know, the CEO may be a drunk and hired his drunk friends. I went all the way to the president of my college and he did not care. People resigned over this. People were fired and demoted. But, my life was the one that was ruined just for doing the right thing. They acted as if they wanted to be helpful and follow the laws. But they didn’t. They waited until the “story” was over and then they began giving me bad evaluations. I live in a state close to Nebraska. They have very similar whistleblower laws. Good luck getting an attorney to help you. They do not win these cases because most people just do not care. I had an attorney tell me “let me know when they fire you and THEN we can do something.” I lived through abuse and hell for years and then when they fired me after building up a false negative employment history for two years, he said, “Oh you didn’t have a contract. Sorry.” I could not sleep, I lot weight, I had to have my home watched by the police for months. This was a very big deal and NO ONE CARED.
  
  My best advice: Contact OSHA and anonymously report safety issues involving intoxicated people operating heavy machinery. Then, AND THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THEING: Get out of there. Start applying for new jobs now. Try to get to another campus. Try to get to another college or university in the area. Try to apply for other state jobs. But, get out now. Keep your references intact. After you have another job, THEN start contacting more federal and state agencies if you want to do the right thing. But, get yourself out. I had heard of PTSD. But I had no idea that it is a terror that will take over your mind and ruin your life.
  
  The laws in this country are not helpful to working people. And by the time your employer is finished with you, their high dollar attorney will make it look like you were the worst employee in the world and they will fool any jury. And your fellow employees will scatter like rats. I commend you for your courage thus far. It takes a different kind of person to want people to do the right thing. But, unfortunately, most people do not do the right thing and they don’t care if you do….not in this type of environment.
  
  Do not tell anyone what you are doing at all at work. Not even someone you think is your best friend. Speak to no one else. Get another job and/or report this information to the authorities
  - written 1 year, 10 months ago

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