PTSD Explained
Introduction
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can develop after you've been involved in a dangerous or frightening situation. It may be caused by military combat, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, serious accidents, or childhood abuse. In some cases, the symptoms of PTSD are triggered by events such as violent attacks or sexual assaults.
What is PTSD?
PTSD is a severe anxiety disorder that can happen when you've experienced or witnessed a dangerous event. This type of event could be physical, such as war, assault, or rape; or it could be psychological, like witnessing someone else's death.
You may have PTSD if you:
Feel very afraid (even when there's no real danger)
Feel numb and disconnected from other people
Avoid reminders of the trauma
Are easily startled by loud noises or sudden movements
Have intrusive thoughts
If these symptoms last for more than a month after the event happened, this could mean you have PTSD.
Signs and symptoms of PTSD
PTSD is a mental health condition that can develop following a traumatic event. Symptoms may include:
Intrusive memories of the event
Nightmares
Flashbacks (feeling or acting as if you're re-living the event)
Unwanted thoughts about the trauma
Causes of PTSD
The causes of PTSD are many and varied, but in its most common form, the condition is triggered by a traumatic event. For example:
Child abuse or neglect
Sexual assault (particularly repeated childhood sexual abuse)
Military combat exposure to an explosion or firefight that killed or injured fellow soldiers
Witnessing or participating in a violent crime such as homicide, rape/sexual assault, torture, or kidnapping
Complications of PTSD
Depression. 10 to 20 percent of people with PTSD eventually develop another mood disorder, such as major depression, dysthymia (chronic low-grade depression), bipolar disorder, or generalized anxiety disorder.
Substance abuse and addiction. People with PTSD are at greater risk for substance abuse and addiction than those who do not have the condition. The more severe their symptoms are and the longer they've had them, the higher this risk.
A wide range of other problems (e.g., suicide attempts). Suicide attempts are more common among people with PTSD than in people without it; rates range from 2 to 5 percent compared with 1 percent for those without PTSD in a given year, according to one estimate
When to get help
If you think that you have symptoms of PTSD, please reach out. I can help you process the traumatic event and how it has affected your life since then. Together we can work on stopping what you are feeling and experiencing.
If a loved one is experiencing PTSD, talk to them about getting help. It may be hard for someone with PTSD to hear this from someone else, but it's important for them to understand that their reactions are normal and treatable.
Trauma Diagnosis
The process of diagnosing PTSD begins with taking a mental health history. A thorough history includes questions about any traumatic events that may have occurred, their frequency and duration, as well as symptoms such as anxiety, fearfulness, depression, and insomnia.
Based on these answers as well as other factors like age or gender (men are more likely to develop PTSD than women), I will determine whether your symptoms fit the criteria for PTSD.
A diagnosis is not given until you've experienced at least one symptom for at least one month following exposure to trauma or stressor event(s). This is called the delayed-onset criterion and is designed to prevent people who are experiencing normal reactions from being diagnosed with this disorder prematurely. Once you receive an official diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), you can start treatment right away in order to help manage your symptoms effectively so you can get back into your daily life sooner rather than later!
Treatment
There are several treatment options for PTSD. Medications can be used to control symptoms and improve sleep, but they don't cure PTSD. They are like a Band-Aid, helping you feel better while you're learning to manage your condition through other treatments.
Talk therapy (also called psychotherapy) is effective at treating PTSD by helping you work through the trauma that caused it and the problems that often arise afterward. This can include cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), cognitive processing therapy (CPT), exposure therapy (PE), or a combination. CBT and CPT involve changing how you think about your experiences or trauma; exposure therapy involves confronting fears until they become easier to deal with over time. Relaxation techniques such as meditation, breathing exercises, or yoga may also be helpful in some cases.
PTSD can be treated
If you're suffering from PTSD, it's important to seek help as soon as possible. PTSD can be treated with medication and therapy that can help you manage your symptoms, so they don't interfere with your daily life. It's important to know that treatment doesn't necessarily mean curing the problem; instead, it helps people with PTSD learn how to cope with their anxiety, depression, and other symptoms on an ongoing basis. For example, if someone has frequent flashbacks of past traumatic events, a doctor might prescribe medications like antidepressants or anti-anxiety medications; these drugs help regulate chemicals in the brain that influence emotions. This may reduce or even eliminate the frequency of flashbacks altogether—but it won't make them go away completely (and they will likely return if patients stop taking their medication). A therapist provides sessions in which patients practice ways of coping with difficult situations without triggering memories related to past trauma—such as learning how not to react impulsively when someone says something upsetting so that it doesn't reinforce negative self-beliefs about oneself being weak/unable/etc.
Conclusion
PTSD can be treated and managed, so it is important to seek help if you or someone you know has symptoms of PTSD.
