Post Traumatic Stress Disorders
What is PTSD?
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a disorder that develops in some people who have experienced a shocking, scary, or dangerous event.
For individuals who have been exposed to trauma, at times the events can have such a profound psychological effect that they develop PTSD. Traumatic events can be anything from having witnessed a disturbing event, or having been a victim of bullying, physical assault or even growing up in a turbulent household. The list of what defines a traumatic event is broad.
Signs and Symptoms
In any case, people with PTSD frequently have the symptoms of experiencing flashbacks of the trauma, feeling always of the edge or being hyper vigilant, avoiding places and things that may bring back memories of the trauma and may be easily startled. Symptoms of depression and anxiety also prominently feature in PTSD.
Effective treatments with specific psychotherapy such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) possibly in combination with medications can offer closure and relief to the patients whilst restoring functionality and improving quality of life.
To be diagnosed with PTSD, an adult must have all of the following for at least 1 month:
- At least one re-experiencing symptom
- At least one avoidance symptom
- At least two arousal and reactivity symptoms
- At least two cognition and mood symptoms
Re-experiencing symptoms include:
Flashbacks—reliving the trauma over and over, including physical symptoms like a racing heart or sweating
Bad dreams
Frightening thoughts
Re-experiencing symptoms may cause problems in a person’s everyday routine. The symptoms can start from the person’s own thoughts and feelings. Words, objects, or situations that are reminders of the event can also trigger re-experiencing symptoms.
Avoidance symptoms include:
Staying away from places, events, or objects that are reminders of the traumatic experience
Avoiding thoughts or feelings related to the traumatic event
Things that remind a person of the traumatic event can trigger avoidance symptoms. These symptoms may cause a person to change his or her personal routine. For example, after a bad car accident, a person who usually drives may avoid driving or riding in a car.
Arousal and reactivity symptoms include:
Being easily startled
Feeling tense or “on edge”
Having difficulty sleeping
Having angry outbursts
Arousal symptoms are usually constant, instead of being triggered by things that remind one of the traumatic events. These symptoms can make the person feel stressed and angry. They may make it hard to do daily tasks, such as sleeping, eating, or concentrating.
Cognition and mood symptoms include:
Trouble remembering key features of the traumatic event
Negative thoughts about oneself or the world
Distorted feelings like guilt or blame
Loss of interest in enjoyable activities
Cognition and mood symptoms can begin or worsen after the traumatic event, but are not due to injury or substance use. These symptoms can make the person feel alienated or detached from friends or family members.