UNDERSTANDING POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER

It has been called shell shock, battle fatigue and war neurosis, but the disorder is not limited to soldiers.  In the past, it was often misunderstood or misdiagnosed, but the disorder has very specific symptoms that together form a definite psychological syndrome.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)…

• affects hundreds of thousands of people who have survived the trauma of natural disasters such as hurricanes, accidental disasters, or deliberate, man-made disaster such as war;
• is an anxiety disorder that results from a terrifying, life-threatening event;
• can significantly interfere with a victim’s ability to concentrate, to maintain close relationships with family and friends, and to function efficiently at a job;
• can contribute to the development of serious depressive illness and/or alcohol and substance abuse;
• can affect previously healthy, well-adjusted men, women and children.

What Are The Symptoms Of PTSD?

Vivid and sudden memories (flashbacks) of the stressful event.  These flashbacks may last from minutes to hours and may occur months or years after the trauma.

Nightmares centering around the traumatic event.  Victims often wake up screaming or exhibit other fear-induced responses.  During waking hours, they often react intensely to loud noises.

An avoidance phenomenon, which affects the person’s relationships with others because they think they failed in ensuring the safety of those, killed or injured during the disaster.

Exaggerated startle reactions stemming from the fact that disaster victims suffering from the disorder are always on guard for danger.  Hurricane victims may be affected by sounds such as storm winds or thunder during a typical rainstorm.

Panic attacks resulting from the extreme fear felt during the traumatic event, which remained unresolved during later events in their lives.  During the attack, their throats tighten, breathing and heart rate increase, and they feel dizzy and nauseated.

Is There Treatment for PTSD?

Yes.  Using a variety of methods, psychiatrists and other mental health professionals help individuals work through the trauma and pain to resolve the resulting grief which they often cannot even express.  Some treatment approaches include:

• Individual Psychotherapy.  Post-traumatic stress disorder results, in part, from the difference between the individual’s personal values or view of the world ad the reality that he/she witnessed or lived through during the traumatic event.  Psychotherapy focuses on helping the individual examine personal values and how his/her behavior or experience during the traumatic event violated them.  Goals of the psychotherapeutic process include resolution of the conscious and unconscious conflicts that were created by the trauma, building of self-esteem and self-control, and renewal of the sense of integrity and personal pride.
  
• Family Therapy.  Spouses and children often report their loved one doesn’t communicate, show affection or share in family life.  Domestic conflict and abuse may also occur.  By working with the family, the therapist can help to bring about change within the family.  Its members can learn to recognize and cope with the range of emotions each feels.  They do this by learning good communication, parenting and stress management techniques.
  
• Peer Support Groups and “Rap” Groups.  This method encourages survivors of similar traumatic events to share their experiences and reactions to them.  In so doing, group member’s help each other realize that many people would have done the same thing and felt the same emotions.  That, in turn, helps the individual realize that he/she is not uniquely unworthy or guilty.  Peer support and rap groups help the victim build a new view of the world and redefine a positive sense of self.
  
• Medications for depressive disorders and anxiety can also be helpful.

Reprinted with permission from the National Mental Health Association.

If you would like a referral to a mental health professional or to a support group, contact the Mental Health Association of Erie County, Inc. at (716) 886-1242.