Post traumatic stress disorder is classified as an anxiety disorder that appears after a single or multiple traumatic experience(s). Effects of the disorder can appear immediately after the event, or in a lot of circumstances, weeks, months or even years afterwards.
The disorder can appear in any situation where someone feels extreme fear, terror or helplessness, this can also include being a party or witness to the events. Post traumatic stress generally occur when the body is unable to cope with the event that has taken place, this is usually either a life threatening event or a witness to a death(s), although doesn't always have to be the case.
Not all stressful events will lead someone to suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, it entirely depends on the situation, severity and the person being affected, although this doesn't make someone who is affected any lesser a person than someone who isn't affected.
Generally someone whom already suffers from pre-existing mental health issues, those more isolated from society or those unable to deal with the event /stresses at the time are more likely to get symptoms of post traumatic stress.
Post traumatic Stress can be broken down into two different types, these being post traumatic stress and complex post traumatic stress. Complex post traumatic stress is when the exposure to the event becomes prolonged, such as that of abuse or multiple incidents of stress, rather than a shortened or single event.
Causes of Post Traumatic Stress
Post traumatic stress can occur in many different circumstances, they all relate however to the inability for the body to cope with the event(s) in question. Although not an exhaustive list the following are common situations were post traumatic stress can become prevalent:
Rape or molestation
Violent Crime
Serious / severe accidents
Childhood Abuse
Natural Disasters
Terrorist Attacks/li>
Workers of emergency services or the military
Witnesses to crime, accidents or death.
Symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress
The symptoms and effects of post traumatic stress, can in some cases be as bad, if not worse than the actual events that took place initially. The symptoms of post traumatic stress can and do include the following:
Re-experiencing, through flashbacks or dreams
Avoiding people or places, that may produce reminders of the event
Hyperarousal, feeling consistently on edge
Emotionally numb, feeling detached
Anger or entire submission to stimuli
Panic attacks
Feeling ill or physically sick
Anxiety, depression or thoughts of harm
Isolation or reclusion
Phobias, due to the event
Problems concentrating
Inability to recall parts of the event or associate it to yourself
Treatment
Before treatment of post traumatic stress, an evaluation may be required this is to diagnose the actual disorder. The criteria for diagnosing post traumatic stress are, the person has to experience the following: (This is not an exhaustive list, but does give a basic overview).
Experiencing or witnessing an event(s) that has involved death, serious injury or the threat of either. This can also include being taken hostage, trapped or severe helplessness, which can all lead to the belief of serious harm or death.
Reliving the whole experience through flashbacks or nightmares, this usually occurs without thinking.
Trying to avoid people or places that remind you of the event.
Feeling of hyperarousal, constantly on edge making it difficult to sleep or relax, this can lead to burnout.
Symptoms last longer than 1 month and start after the event
The symptoms cause a significant change to your life, this can be personal, work or relationships and make it difficult to lead a normal life.
Actual treatment of PTSD can be varied, dependant upon the specialist you seek but can include a mixture of both medication and therapy.
Medication will generally be in the form of anti-depressants or / and betablockers. Anti-depressants to control the mood such as a calming effect to minimize the control the feelings have over the body. The beta-blockers can be used to remove the physical symptoms, such as that of the heart beating faster, high blood pressure and feelings associated with anxiety or panic attacks. Medication is usually given as a form of relief before or during therapy, this can be to calm the body while awaiting therapy that in some instances can take a while.
The main forms of therapy for post traumatic stress are Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or CBT for short and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing or EMDR for short. Both of these have been shown to relive the symptoms of post traumatic stress. There are many others such as group or family therapy, although CBT and EMDR are generally used as a basis around other forms of support.