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Teen Mom OG: Maci Bookout is ‘afraid to go to sleep’ amid PTSD from gas station shooting

Maci Bookout of Teen Mom OG
Maci Bookout admitted she is “afraid to go to sleep” after witnessing a deadly gas station shooting last year. Pic credit: MTV

Teen Mom OG star Maci Bookout is still feeling the effects of witnessing a gas station shooting that has left her with PTSD and she admittedly is still “afraid to go to sleep” at night.

As previously reported by Monsters & Critics, Maci stopped at a gas station in October 2020 while on her way to pick up her son Bentley from wrestling practice.

While Maci was at the gas station, a police officer was pursuing a suspect who had fled an accident scene on foot. The suspect ended up at the same gas station where Maci was at the same time.

Bodycam footage showed the police officer running towards the gas station yelling, “Shots fired!” in the terrifying scene. Local news stations confirmed that the suspect died of his gunshot wounds.

Maci, who is rumored to be joining the cast of the new Teen Mom spinoff, confessed that she heard the gunshots and glass started hitting her before she holed herself up in a bathroom and dialed her husband Taylor, thinking she wasn’t going to survive.

Maci Bookout suffers from PTSD after witnessing fatal shooting

Now, during the latest episode of Teen Mom OG, Maci met up with her mom to talk about how things are going with her PTSD after the ordeal.

Maci admitted to her mom that her trauma is sensory-related, so things like feeling a tile floor under her feet and hearing sudden, loud sounds can trigger her anxiety.

Maci explained to her mom how her senses are a major trigger, “A lot of my PTSD is sense-related, so, like smell, sight, feeling, like tile floors and stuff … just anything that remotely pertains to all gas stations.”

Another symptom of Maci’s PTSD is lack of sleep. The mom of three also admitted to her mom that she’s had trouble falling asleep and commonly has nightmares since witnessing the shooting.

Teen Mom OG star has nightmares, is ‘afraid to go to sleep’

“The nightmares are really bad still, which I think is part of the reason of why my insomnia has gotten worse because I’m afraid to go to sleep,” Maci admitted to her mom.

She continued, “Four nights out of the week, three to four, I’m definitely gonna have a dream.”

Maci has been talking with a therapist since the incident and is working on desensitizing herself to gas stations again, when she’s ready.

Teen Mom OG fans watched as Maci’s husband Taylor accompanied her to a gas station for the first time since the ordeal.

Maci thought she was ready to visit a gas station again, but when it came time to get out of the car to pump gas, she put her head on the steering wheel and began to hyperventilate.

Taylor has been supportive of his wife throughout her PTSD journey. After the shooting, which aired last season on Teen Mom OG, Taylor set up a surprise girls’ night out for Maci with her friends.

Maci has a long journey ahead of her, as far as her PTSD is concerned, but she has the support of medical professionals and her supportive husband and family along the way.

Teen Mom OG airs on Tuesdays at 8/7c on MTV.

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