Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is a condition brought on by an intensely traumatic experience that had the potential of threatening your life or the life of those around you.

This disorder was first discovered in wartime, particularly combat situations, and was known as “Shell Shock”.

DSM IV characterizes PTSD as a disorder caused by an event where a person "experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others".

Causes of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder can include:

Being involved in a serious accident
Violent attacks - including rape, kidnapping, and spousal abuse
Natural disasters
Child abuse

Symptoms

Symptoms of PTSD usually begin immediately following the event but occasionally manifest many months or years after thereafter; these symptoms include intense psychological distress, flashbacks, exaggerated startle response, difficulty sleeping, Irritability, hypervigilance, and reoccurring dreams of the event.

A person with PTSD may seem irritable, socially detached, and become startled by sudden noise or movements; this may cause them to avoid crowds and social events where the stimuli can become overwhelming. Stimuli associated with the traumatic event may trigger psychological distress and often flashbacks. Emotions towards others can be dampened to an extent that is causes relationship instability.

Phases of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder:

The acute phase:

The acute phase occurs within the first six months following a traumatic experience and is characterized by intense anxiety and fear, which can be alleviated slightly by restoring some amount of order to the situation. Often during this stage sufferers will look for ways to regain control.

In the case of violent crimes this is the stage where the person may try to regain control by filing a police report or taking legal action against the perpetrator. During this stage sufferers typically feel that they have had their world turned upside down, and will try to regain some purposeful meaning in life. Oftentimes, fear and anxiety will be replaced with anger and rage at what has occurred. These can often be more constructive emotions, enabling the sufferer to take actions which allow them to retake control of their lives.

In the case of an abusive relationship, anger may compel them to leave the situation or set limits on the abusive behavior.

The chronic phase:

The chronic phase of PTSD occurs if the problem was not successfully treated in the first six months. In this stage, the fear and anger of the first stage are replaced with feelings of withdrawal, isolation, and depression. Over time the constant anxiety, fear, and anger take its toll on the sufferer’s life as well as brain chemistry. A state of heightened alertness can only exist for so long before the sufferer’s brain begins to compensate for this heightened level of anxiety by reducing their emotional valence to stimuli. Unfortunately as the brain tries to mediate its level of anxiety, other emotions like joy, laughter, and even anger, are dampened in the process. Sufferers often complain of a feeling of complete emotional numbness, lack of concentration, and a general feeling of depression.