Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

PTSDPost-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder. It is caused by seeing or experiencing a traumatic event, particularly post military experience.

About

PTSD affects about 7.7 million American adults, but can occur at any age, including childhood. Women are more likely to develop PTSD than men, and there is some evidence that susceptibility to the disorder may run in families. This includes war veterans and survivors of physical and sexual assault, abuse, accidents, disasters and many other serious events. Not everyone with PTSD has personally experienced a dangerous event. Some people get symptoms of PTSD after a friend or family member has experienced trauma, and the sudden, unexpected death of a loved one can also trigger PTSD.

FYI

PTSD is the fallout from a terrifying or catastrophic event in your life, usually something where you, or someone close to you, were in danger of being seriously hurt or killed. It could be a car crash, being a witness or the victim of a violent crime, serving in combat, or living through a natural disaster such as a hurricane or earthquake. Many people who experience traumas recover quickly and get back to their normal lives. But not everyone. Some develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). They may re-live the event over and over, in nightmares at night and scary thoughts during the day. They may go to extraordinary lengths to avoid any reminder (people, places, smells, etc.) of the event. They may also develop symptoms of any or all of the other types of stress discussed above. Those symptoms, if they occur, usually appear around three months after the event, although it could be as much as a year or longer.

Why seek help?

  • PTSD is treatable. You do not need to suffer from the symptoms of PTSD alone.
  • Early treatment is better.
  • PTSD can impact your family life.
  • PTSD can be associated with other health issues.
  • It may not be PTSD.

Symptoms

  • Surviving a serious accident
  • Surviving a terrorist attack
  • An event where you thought you were going to die
  • Shooting or being shot at in combat
  • Other stressful events

Many people who survive events like these will feel normal after time. But, for some people, the stress from a traumatic event stays with them and might even get worse. These people may get PTSD.

Long-term symptoms may also include:

  • Anti social behavior. You may feel that you can’t trust other people, which could lead you to withdraw from friends or family, or cause relationship problems at home, school, or work.
  • Intrusive symptoms, such as flashbacks and nightmares. These are often so vivid that it may feel like you’re going through the trauma again. You may feel as scared as you were when it actually happened. Instead of (or in addition to) flashbacks and nightmares, you may suddenly feel a wave of fear, panic, anger, or crying that comes completely out of the blue.

Prevention

If you think you may have PTSD, it’s important to get checked out. Here are some ways to get help:

  • Get evaluated for PTSD by a psychiatrist, psychologist, or anyone trained to asses psychological problems. Or, talk with your doctor.
  • Contact your local VA Hospital or Vet Center.
  • If you feel that your condition may improve over time, you may take a wait-and-see approach. If you get better on your own, you won’t need treatment.
  • Talk to a friend or family member. He or she may be able to support you and find you help.

Diagnosis

Things to consider:

  • I have symptoms of re-experiencing or reliving the traumatic event:
    • Have bad dreams or nightmares about the event or something like it.
    • Act or feel like the event were happening all over again (flashbacks).
    • Have a lot of intense feelings when I am reminded of the event.
    • My body responds when I am reminded of the event (for example, my heart races or pounds, I sweat, find it hard to breathe, feel faint, feel like I’m going to lose control).
  • I have symptoms of avoiding reminders of the traumatic event:
    • Avoid thoughts, conversations, or feelings that remind me of the event.
    • Avoid people, places, or activities that remind me of the event.
    • Have trouble remembering some important part of the event.
  • I have noticed these symptoms since the event happened:
    • Have lost interest in, or just don’t do, things that used to be important to me.
    • Feel detached from people; find it hard to trust people.
    • Feel emotionally “numb” and find it hard to have loving feelings even toward those who are close to me.
    • Have a hard time falling or staying asleep.
    • Am irritable and have problems with my anger.
    • Have a hard time concentrating.
    • Think I may not live long and feel there’s no point in planning for the future.
    • Am jumpy and get startled easily.
    • Am always “on guard.”
  • I experience these medical or emotional problems:
    • Stomach problems
    • Intestinal (bowel) problems
    • Gynecological (female) problems
    • Weight gain or loss
    • Pain, for example, in back, neck, or pelvic area
    • Headaches
    • Skin rashes and other skin problems
    • Lack of energy; feel tired all the time
    • Alcohol, drug, or other substance use problems
    • Depression or feeling down
    • Anxiety or worry
    • Panic attacks

Questions to Ask Your Health Care Provider

  • What’s the cause of my PTSD and how severe it is?
  • What are the symptoms associated with PTSD?
  • Are there other health conditions that could be causing or worsening my stress?
  • What steps do you recommend that I take to better manage my stress and why?
  • Should I see a psychiatrist, psychologist or other mental health provider?
  • Would medication help? If so, is there a generic alternative to the medicine you’re prescribing?
  • Do you have any printed material that I can take home?
  • What local support groups do you recommend?

Treatments

PTSD can be treated. If you think you have PTSD, it might help to talk to your healthcare provider. Maybe it’s hard to talk about what happened. You can begin by recording episodes that you experience and bringing them to your appointment.

Explain when you experienced or saw a traumatic event and felt extreme fear, helplessness or horror. When did this happen (day/month/year) and what was it that happened?

Here are some ways you healthcare provider may treat your PTSD:

  • Medication
  • Psychotherapy, either individual or group
  • A combination of therapy and drugs

FAMILY AND FRIENDS: HOW YOU CAN HELP

If you think your loved one is suffering from severe stress or PTSD and isn’t taking active steps to seek out treatment, he needs you. The most important thing you can do is to be understanding and supportive. Talk with him about what he’s feeling and remind him that PTSD—is treatable and doesn’t mean he’s weak or flawed in any way. Encourage him to go out for a walk with you, or suggest low-stress, just-plain-fun activities. Helping him keep his expectations and goals reasonable can be a huge help.

If you feel that your loved one needs more than you can provide, help him get what he needs. This may mean that you’ll have to take the initiative and make medical appointments for him, and take him there if he’s unwilling or unable to do it himself. Most important, be patient. Recovering from stress will take some time. And when it comes to PTSD, there is no quick cure. But the condition can be effectively managed and symptoms greatly reduced. Finally, be sure to take care of yourself. Your man’s stress can spill over into the lives of everyone around him. Caring for another person requires love, commitment, and patience. And you can’t possibly take care of someone else if doing so is stressing you out.

Last modified: June 2, 2014