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My uncle has PTSD - he was a green beret who fought in the early portion of Viet Nam
I'm a former Marine, 'Nam vet, and I've had PTSD since day one. In fact, 99.9% of men in combat, or even just being in a combat zone, will have PTSD to some degree or another.
It might be loud noises that still bother us, or peering into the dark of night and wondering if "Charley" has set up an ambush. Whatever, you try your best to deal with it. Some need professional help, others don't.
Interesting that your uncle tried to strangle his wife in his sleep. I did the same thing, but it was just after returning to the US in 1968.

I recently triggered an episode in a good friend of mine. He was hit by an IED in July. He was home on convalescent leave and asked me to take him on some errands. He suffers from TBI and spinal and neck injuries plus terrible headaches. I was so careful driving because of all the pain, anyway he asked me to pull into a drive through for something to drink and I hit the curb, OMG, Bless his heart, he went white and was gasping, sweat was pouring off of him and he was shaking terribly. I’ll never forget the look on his face. I still feel terrible about it.

I hope your wife was forgiving. I thought about how that could have resulted in a terrible outcome but he finally was woken enough by her pleas of saying, “It’s me” and her name. I agree with you. I don’t think PTSD is that hard to develop. I have it to some degree (of course I would never, ever begin to imply anything like what one goes through in military combat) due to being beaten and abused in my first marriage. I also worked with a guy that was horribly abused by his father and walked up to him once and tapped him and he freaked out. Another co-worker told me the story. He was a lovely man and I just felt bad. Only God knows the internal demons that we deal with.

God bless you for your service esp due to the way you were treated when you guys came home. I salute you all.

Although your comment was not directed to me, I read it and, of course had a reaction. I had/have PTSD from VN, but also from being in six officer involved shootings and suffering the failures to save lives, even though it was impossible to do so. My wife, the saint, has stuck by me through all the violent events and my own outbursts. There are many out there who have it and live lives damaged by it.

Although I've never received any sort of counseling or treatment, I've had to deal with it myself. I have made adjustments in how I do things and I act in ways that are not what my impulses tell me to do. (Does that make sense?) When I want to kill someone, I have to walk away and take my mind elsewhere. When I have the dreams, i tell my wife about them. she listens and calms me.

Overall, these techniques have kept me out of trouble most of the time but not always. In the instances that my reaction to some minor aggravation has gotten me into trouble, I've tried to learn from the incident and to avoid repeating it. I can't have the window shade above the toilet open (even though we live in the woods and no one can see in) because of the sniper that exists in my mind waiting to take the shot when I'm framed by the window. It's a hell of a way to live.