So What is PTSD?
Virtually any trauma, defined as an event that is life-threatening or that severely compromises
the emotional well-being of an individual or causes intense fear, may cause PTSD. Such events
After the event, you may feel scared, confused, and angry. If these feelings don't go away or they get worse, you may have PTSD. These symptoms may disrupt your life, making it hard to continue with your daily activities.
Although the diagnosis of PTSD currently requires that the sufferer has a history of experiencing a
traumatic event as defined here, people may develop PTSD in reaction to events that may not
qualify as traumatic but can be devastating life events like divorce or unemployment.
What are the signs and symptoms of PTSD? Re-Experiencing The TraumaticEvent:
What are the effects of PTSD?
Although not all individuals who have been traumatized develop PTSD, there can be
significant physical consequences of being traumatized. For example, research indicates
that people who have been exposed to an extreme stressor sometimes have a smaller hippocampus
(a region of the brain that plays a role in memory) than people who have not been exposed to
trauma. This is significant in understanding the effects of trauma in general and the impact
of PTSD specifically since the hippocampus is the part of the brain that is thought to have an
important role in developing new memories about life events. Also, whether or not a
traumatized person goes on to develop PTSD, they seem to be at risk for higher use of
cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana.
http://www.medicinenet.com/posttraumatic_stress_disorder
What are the risk factors for PTSD?
Issues that tend to put people at higher risk for developing PTSD include increased duration
of a traumatic event, higher number of traumatic events endured, higher severity of the trauma
experienced, having an emotional condition prior to the event, or having little social support
in the form of family or friends. In addition to those risk factors, children and adolescents,
females, and people with learning disabilities or violence in the home seem to have a greater
risk of developing PTSD after a traumatic event.
The three groups of symptoms that are required to assign the diagnosis of PTSD are
* recurrent re-experiencing of the trauma (for example, troublesome memories, flashbacks
that are usually caused by reminders of the traumatic events, recurring nightmares about the
trauma and/or dissociative reliving of the trauma),
* avoidance to the point of having a phobia of places, people, and experiences that remind
the sufferer of the trauma and a general numbing of emotional responsiveness, and
* chronic physical signs of hyperarousal, including sleep problems, trouble concentrating,
irritability, anger, poor concentration, blackouts or difficulty remembering things, increased
tendency and reaction to being startled, and hypervigilance to threat.
The emotional numbing of PTSD may present as a lack of interest in activities that used to be
enjoyed (anhedonia), emotional deadness, distancing oneself from people, and/or a sense of a
foreshortened future (for example, not being able to think about the future or make future
plans, not believing one will live much longer). At least one re-experiencing symptom, three
avoidance/numbing symptoms, and two hyperarousal symptoms must be present for at least one
month and must cause significant distress or functional impairment in order for the diagnosis
of PTSD to be assigned. PTSD is considered of chronic duration if it persists for three months
or more.
A similar disorder in terms of symptom repertoire is acute stress disorder. The major
differences between the two disorders are that acute stress disorder symptoms persist from two
days to four weeks, and a fewer number of traumatic symptoms are required to make the diagnosis
as compared to PTSD.
In children, re-experiencing the trauma may occur through repeated play that has trauma-related themes instead of through memories, and distressing dreams may have more general content rather than of the traumatic event itself. As in adults, at least one re-experiencing symptom, three avoidance/numbing symptoms, and two hyperarousal symptoms must be present for at least one month and must cause significant distress or functional impairment in order for the diagnosis of PTSD to be assigned. When symptoms have been present for less than one month, a diagnosis of acute stress disorder (ASD) can be made.
Symptoms of PTSD that tend to be associated with C-PTSD include: problems regulating feelings, which can result in suicidal thoughts, explosive anger, or passive aggressive behaviors; a tendency to forget the trauma or feel detached from one's life (dissociation) or body (depersonalization); persistent feelings of helplessness, shame, guilt, or being completely different from others; feeling the perpetrator of trauma is all-powerful and preoccupation with either revenge against or allegiance with the perpetrator; and severe change in those things that give the sufferer meaning, like a loss of spiritual faith or an ongoing sense of helplessness, hopelessness, or despair.
NOTE: Most of the info in this article came from this website,http://www.medicinenet.com/posttraumatic_stress_disorder. If you think for any reason that you may have PTSD please consult you doctor immediately!
Virtually any trauma, defined as an event that is life-threatening or that severely compromises
the emotional well-being of an individual or causes intense fear, may cause PTSD. Such events
After the event, you may feel scared, confused, and angry. If these feelings don't go away or they get worse, you may have PTSD. These symptoms may disrupt your life, making it hard to continue with your daily activities.
Although the diagnosis of PTSD currently requires that the sufferer has a history of experiencing a
traumatic event as defined here, people may develop PTSD in reaction to events that may not
qualify as traumatic but can be devastating life events like divorce or unemployment.
What are the signs and symptoms of PTSD? Re-Experiencing The TraumaticEvent:
- Intrusive, upsetting memories of the event
- Flashbacks (acting or feeling like the event is happening again)
- Nightmares (either of the event or of other frightening things)
- Feelings of intense distress when reminded of the trauma
- Intense physical reactions to reminders of the event (e.g. pounding heart, rapid breathing, nausea, muscle tension, sweating)
- Avoiding activities, places, thoughts, or feelings that remind you of the trauma
- Inability to remember important aspects of the trauma
- Loss of interest in activities and life in general
- Feeling detached from others and emotionally numb
- Sense of a limited future (you don’t expect to live a normal life span, get married, have a career)
- Difficulty falling or staying asleep
- Irritability or outbursts of anger
- Difficulty concentrating
- Hypervigilance (on constant “red alert”)
- Feeling jumpy and easily startled
- Anger and irritability
- Guilt, shame, or self-blame
- Substance abuse
- Depression and hopelessness
- Suicidal thoughts and feelings
- Feeling alienated and alone
- Feelings of mistrust and betrayal
- Headaches, stomach problems, chest pain
What are the effects of PTSD?
Although not all individuals who have been traumatized develop PTSD, there can be
significant physical consequences of being traumatized. For example, research indicates
that people who have been exposed to an extreme stressor sometimes have a smaller hippocampus
(a region of the brain that plays a role in memory) than people who have not been exposed to
trauma. This is significant in understanding the effects of trauma in general and the impact
of PTSD specifically since the hippocampus is the part of the brain that is thought to have an
important role in developing new memories about life events. Also, whether or not a
traumatized person goes on to develop PTSD, they seem to be at risk for higher use of
cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana.
http://www.medicinenet.com/posttraumatic_stress_disorder
What are the risk factors for PTSD?
Issues that tend to put people at higher risk for developing PTSD include increased duration
of a traumatic event, higher number of traumatic events endured, higher severity of the trauma
experienced, having an emotional condition prior to the event, or having little social support
in the form of family or friends. In addition to those risk factors, children and adolescents,
females, and people with learning disabilities or violence in the home seem to have a greater
risk of developing PTSD after a traumatic event.
The three groups of symptoms that are required to assign the diagnosis of PTSD are
* recurrent re-experiencing of the trauma (for example, troublesome memories, flashbacks
that are usually caused by reminders of the traumatic events, recurring nightmares about the
trauma and/or dissociative reliving of the trauma),
* avoidance to the point of having a phobia of places, people, and experiences that remind
the sufferer of the trauma and a general numbing of emotional responsiveness, and
* chronic physical signs of hyperarousal, including sleep problems, trouble concentrating,
irritability, anger, poor concentration, blackouts or difficulty remembering things, increased
tendency and reaction to being startled, and hypervigilance to threat.
The emotional numbing of PTSD may present as a lack of interest in activities that used to be
enjoyed (anhedonia), emotional deadness, distancing oneself from people, and/or a sense of a
foreshortened future (for example, not being able to think about the future or make future
plans, not believing one will live much longer). At least one re-experiencing symptom, three
avoidance/numbing symptoms, and two hyperarousal symptoms must be present for at least one
month and must cause significant distress or functional impairment in order for the diagnosis
of PTSD to be assigned. PTSD is considered of chronic duration if it persists for three months
or more.
A similar disorder in terms of symptom repertoire is acute stress disorder. The major
differences between the two disorders are that acute stress disorder symptoms persist from two
days to four weeks, and a fewer number of traumatic symptoms are required to make the diagnosis
as compared to PTSD.
In children, re-experiencing the trauma may occur through repeated play that has trauma-related themes instead of through memories, and distressing dreams may have more general content rather than of the traumatic event itself. As in adults, at least one re-experiencing symptom, three avoidance/numbing symptoms, and two hyperarousal symptoms must be present for at least one month and must cause significant distress or functional impairment in order for the diagnosis of PTSD to be assigned. When symptoms have been present for less than one month, a diagnosis of acute stress disorder (ASD) can be made.
Symptoms of PTSD that tend to be associated with C-PTSD include: problems regulating feelings, which can result in suicidal thoughts, explosive anger, or passive aggressive behaviors; a tendency to forget the trauma or feel detached from one's life (dissociation) or body (depersonalization); persistent feelings of helplessness, shame, guilt, or being completely different from others; feeling the perpetrator of trauma is all-powerful and preoccupation with either revenge against or allegiance with the perpetrator; and severe change in those things that give the sufferer meaning, like a loss of spiritual faith or an ongoing sense of helplessness, hopelessness, or despair.
NOTE: Most of the info in this article came from this website,http://www.medicinenet.com/posttraumatic_stress_disorder. If you think for any reason that you may have PTSD please consult you doctor immediately!