Description

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition caused by an extremely stressful or terrifying event, either as part of it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares, severe anxiety and uncontrollable thoughts about the event.

The majority of people who go through traumatic events may have a difficult time adjusting and coping for a short time. But with the time and taking good care of themselves, they begin to feel better. If the symptoms get worse, last for months or years, and affect your ability to function on a daily basis, can have post-traumatic stress disorder .

Get the treatment after PTSD symptoms arise can be very important to relieve the symptoms and help people to function better.

Symptoms

Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms may start within the first three months after a traumatic event. But sometimes symptoms may not appear until years after the event. These symptoms last for more than a month and cause big problems in social or work situations, and how well you get along with others. It can also affect their ability to perform their usual daily tasks.

Usually, the symptoms of PTSD are grouped into four types: intrusive memories, avoidance, negative changes in thinking and mood, and the physical changes and emotional reactions. The symptoms can vary over time or vary from person to person.

Intrusive memories

Symptoms of intrusive memories may include:

  • Unwanted, distressing memories of the traumatic event that return time and time again.
  • Reliving a traumatic event as if it were happening again, also known as flashbacks.
  • Disturbing dreams or nightmares about a traumatic event.
  • Severe emotional distress or physical reactions to something that reminds you of a traumatic event.

Avoidance

Symptoms of avoidance may include:

  • Trying not to think or talk about a traumatic event.
  • Stay away from places, activities or people that remind you of the traumatic event.

Negative changes in thinking and mood

The symptoms of negative changes in thinking and mood may include:

  • Negative thoughts about yourself, other people or the world.
  • Course negative emotions of fear, guilt, blame, anger or shame.
  • Memory problems, including not remembering important aspects of a traumatic event.
  • Feeling detached from family and friends.
  • They are not interested in activities you used to enjoy.
  • Having a hard time feeling positive emotions.
  • Feel emotionally numb.

The physical changes and emotional reactions

The symptoms of the physical changes and emotional reactions, also called arousal symptoms, they may include:

  • Being easily startled or frightened.
  • Always be on guard against the danger.
  • Self-destructive behavior, such as drinking too much or driving too fast.
  • Sleep problems.
  • Difficulty concentrating.
  • Irritability, angry outbursts or aggressive behavior.
  • Physical reactions, such as sweating, rapid breathing, fast heartbeat, or shakes.

For children 6 years of age and younger, the symptoms can also include:

  • Reenacting a traumatic event or aspects of a traumatic event through play.
  • Nightmares that may or may not include the aspects of a traumatic event.

The intensity of the symptoms

Over time, the symptoms of PTSD can vary in their severity. You may have more PTSD symptoms when you are generally stressed, or when you come across reminders of what happened, including the same time of the year when a past traumatic event occurred. For example, you may hear a car backfire and relive combat experiences. Or you can view a report on the news about a sexual assault and feel overcome by memories of his assault.

When to see a doctor

Talk with your health care professional or a mental health professional if you have disturbing thoughts and feelings about a traumatic event for more than a month, especially if they are severe. Also, consult a healthcare professional if you are having trouble getting your life back under control. Receive treatment as soon as possible can help prevent PTSD symptoms from getting worse.

If you have thoughts of suicide

If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, get help right away:

  • Reaching out to a friend or loved one.
  • Contact a minister, spiritual leader or someone in your faith community.
  • In contact with a direct line of suicide. In the united states, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Or the use of the lifeline Chat. The services are free and confidential.U.S. veterans or service members who are in crisis you can call 988, and then press "1" to the Veterans Crisis Line. Or text 838255. Or chat online.The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in the united states has a Spanish language phone line at1-888-628-9454(toll-free).
  • In the united states, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Or the use of the lifeline Chat. The services are free and confidential.
  • United states veterans or service members who are in crisis you can call 988, and then press "1" to the Veterans Crisis Line. Or text 838255. Or chat online.
  • The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in the united states has a Spanish language of the phone line in 1-888-628-9454 (toll-free).
  • Make an appointment with your health care professional or mental health professional.
  • In the united states, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Or the use of the lifeline Chat. The services are free and confidential.
  • United states veterans or service members who are in crisis you can call 988, and then press "1" to the Veterans Crisis Line. Or text 838255. Or chat online.
  • The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in the united states has a Spanish language of the phone line in 1-888-628-9454 (toll-free).

When to get emergency help

If you think you may hurt yourself or attempt suicide, call 911 or the local emergency number immediately.

If you know someone who is in danger of attempting suicide or has made a suicide attempt, make sure someone stays with that person for safety. Call 911 or the local emergency number immediately. Or, if you can do so safely, take the person to the nearest hospital emergency department.

Causes

You can develop post-traumatic stress disorder when you are going through, see, or learn about an event that involves actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual assault.

Health care professionals are not sure why some people suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder . As with most mental health problems, a mix of factors likely the cause, including:

  • Extremely stressful experiences, as well as the amount and the severity of the trauma that has happened in your life.
  • Inherited Mental health risks, such as family history of anxiety and depression.
  • Inherited characteristics of his personality — which is known as his temperament.
  • The way the brain regulates the chemicals and hormones your body releases in response to stress.

Risk factors

People of all ages can have post-traumatic stress disorder. But you may be more prone to developing PTSD after a traumatic event if:

  • Severe or long-lasting traumatic experiences.
  • Were physically injured during the traumatic event.
  • Have been exposed to another type of trauma early in life, such as child abuse.
  • To have a job that exposes you to the traumatic events, such as in the military or a first responder.
  • You have other mental health problems, such as anxiety or depression.
  • Too much drinking or drug abuse.
  • Don't have a good support system of family and friends.
  • Blood relatives with mental health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder or depression.

The traumatic events that increase the risk

The most common events that can lead to post traumatic stress disorder include:

  • Combat exposure.
  • The childhood of physical abuse.
  • Sexual violence.
  • Physical aggression.
  • Being threatened with a weapon.
  • An accident.

Many other traumatic events can also lead to post-traumatic stress disorder , such as fire, natural disaster, theft, robbery, plane crash, torture, kidnapping, endangering the life of a medical diagnosis, a terrorist attack, and the other end or life-threatening events.

Complications

Post-traumatic stress disorder can alter their entire life, their education, work, how well you get along with others, physical health, and the enjoyment of everyday activities. Having PTSD can also increase the risk of other mental health problems, such as:

  • Depression and anxiety disorders.
  • Problems with drugs or alcohol.
  • Think and attempt of suicide.

Prevention

After surviving a traumatic event, many people who have post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms at first, such as not being able to stop thinking about what happened. The fear, the anxiety, anger, depression and guilt are all common reactions to trauma. But the majority of people exposed to trauma do not go on to develop post-traumatic stress disorder .

Getting timely help and support may prevent normal stress reactions that become worse, and that leads to a post-traumatic stress disorder . This can mean a turn to the family and friends who will listen and offer comfort. It can also mean finding a mental health professional to a brief course of therapy. Some people may also find it useful to convert to their faith communities.

The support of other people you may also prevent the turn to unhealthy coping methods, such as the abuse of alcohol or drugs.

Diagnosis

To diagnose post-traumatic stress disorder, your health care professional will likely do is:

  • Physical exam to check for medical problems that may be causing the symptoms.
  • Mental health evaluation that includes talking about their symptoms and the trauma that led to them. You can also fill out questionnaires about their experiences and symptoms.

A diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder means that a person has gone through a real event or possible threat of death, violence or serious injury. That can occur in one or more of these ways:

  • Directly experienced a traumatic event.
  • He witnessed, in person, to a traumatic event happening to others.
  • Learned that someone close to you has had a traumatic event.
  • Be exposed to the graphic details of the traumatic events over and over again, as is the case of the first responders.

You may have PTSD if the problems you have after this exhibition last more than a month and greatly affect your ability to function in social and work environments, and how to get along with others.

Do not try to handle the burden of PTSD on your own. Get help from an expert that the experience in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder .

Treatment

Post-traumatic stress disorder, treatment can help you regain a sense of control over your life. The main treatment is talk therapy, also known as psychotherapy. But the treatment may also include medication.

The combination of these treatments can make your symptoms improve by:

  • The teaching of skills to manage your symptoms.
  • Help you think better about yourself, others and the world.
  • Learning ways to cope if any of these symptoms arise again.
  • The treatment of other problems often related to traumatic experiences, such as depression, anxiety, or misuse of alcohol or drugs.

Psychotherapy

Several types of psychotherapy, also called talk therapy, can be used to treat children and adults with post-traumatic stress disorder . Some types of psychotherapy used in the treatment of PTSD include:

  • The exposure therapy. This behavioral therapy helps you safely face situations and memories that you'll find terrifying, so that you can learn to deal with them. This is done in a gradual, predictable and controllable way. Exposure therapy may be particularly useful for the flashbacks and nightmares. There is a method that uses virtual reality programs that allow you to re-write the configuration in which it suffered a trauma.
  • The cognitive therapy. This type of psychotherapy to help you see the ways of thinking, also known as cognitive patterns that are keeping you stuck. Examples include the negative beliefs about yourself and the risk of trauma happening again. For PTSD , cognitive therapy is often used in conjunction with exposure therapy.

Your therapist can help you build stress management skills to help you to better handle stressful situations and deal with the stress in your life. Skills such as relaxation, sleep and exercise may be useful.

All of these methods can help you get control of the duration of fear after a traumatic event. You and your mental health professional can talk about what type of therapy or combination of therapies that are best suited to your needs.

You can try individual therapy, group therapy, or both. Group therapy can offer a way of connecting with other people through similar experiences.

Drugs

Several types of medications that can help make the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder is best:

  • Antidepressants. These medications can relieve the symptoms of depression and anxiety. You can also help make the problems of sleep and concentration, the better. The selective inhibitors of serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) medications, sertraline (Zoloft), and paroxetine (Paxil) are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder . Venlafaxine (Effexor XR) may also be prescribed. Talk with your health care team about possible side effects.
  • Anti-anxiety medications. These medications may relieve severe anxiety and related problems. Some anti-anxiety medications could be misused. Generally, it is used only for a short time.

Research studies on medications for PTSD include:

  • Stellate ganglion block. This procedure involves the injection of a drug in a collection of nerves on the side of the neck. Although the FDA has not approved the use of this procedure for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder , studies have shown promising results.
  • Prazosin. Prazosin (Minipress) is generally used to manage high blood pressure. Several studies indicate that can reduce or suppress the nightmares in some people with post-traumatic stress disorder . But other studies show no benefit. Ask a health care professional for more information.

You and your healthcare professional can work together to find the best medicine, with the least amount of side effects for you. Your mood and other symptoms can improve within a couple of weeks.

Tell your healthcare provider about the side effects or problems with medications. You may have to try more than one medication, or to your health care professional may need to adjust your dose or schedule of medicine, before finding the right one for you.

Coping and support

If a traumatic event that causes stress and other issues affecting your life, see your health professional or mental health professional. You can also take such measures as to continue with the treatment for PTSD :

  • Follow your treatment plan. Although it may take a while to feel the benefits of the therapy or medications, the treatment can be effective. The majority of people recover. Remember that it takes time. Following your treatment plan and routinely reach out to your mental health professional will help you to move forward.
  • Learn aboutPTSD. This knowledge can help you understand what you're feeling, and then you can build coping strategies to respond effectively.
  • Take care of yourself. Get enough rest, eating a healthy diet, exercise and take time to relax. Try to reduce or not the use of caffeine and nicotine, which can make anxiety worse.
  • Do not self-medicate. Turning to alcohol or drugs to numb your feelings is not healthy, even though it can be a tempting way to cope. This can lead to more problems, barriers to treatment and prevent the real healing.
  • Break the cycle. When you feel anxious, take a brisk walk or work on a hobby to refocus.
  • Stay connected. Spend time with the support and care of people — family, friends, faith leaders, or others. You don't have to talk about what happened. Sharing time with loved ones can offer healing and comfort.
  • Consider a support group. Ask your mental health professional to help you find a support group or contact of veterans ' organizations or of the community's social services system. Or find local support groups in an online directory.

When someone you love has PTSD

The person you love can seem like a different person than you knew before the trauma angry and irritable or withdrawn and depressed, for example. PTSD can be of great emotional stress and mental health of the loved ones and friends.

Hear about a trauma that led to their loved one's PTSD may be painful for you and even cause you to relive hard events. You may find yourself avoiding your loved one attempts to talk about the trauma or feel desperate that your loved one will get better. At the same time, you may feel guilty that you can't fix it to your loved one or accelerate the healing process.

Remember that you can not change someone. But you can:

  • Learn aboutPTSD. This can help you know what your loved one is going through.
  • Be aware of thatPTSDincludes prevent and isolate themselves from others. If your loved one does not want your help, leave a space and let your loved one know that you are available when the time is right.
  • Offer to go to medical appointments. If your loved one is ready, go to the dating can help you learn more about and help with the treatment.
  • Be willing to listen. Let your loved one know that you are willing to listen, but you understand that if this is not the right time to speak. Try not to force your loved one to talk about a trauma until your loved one is ready.
  • Urge to the meetings. Plan opportunities to do activities with family and friends, but respect the decision of the person if the time is not right to participate. The celebration of events.
  • Make your health a priority. Take care of yourself by eating healthy, being physically active and getting enough rest and sleep. Take time alone or with friends. And take part in activities that help you recharge.
  • Seek help if you need it. If you have a hard time coping with the situation, talk to your health professional. You may need to see a therapist who can help you work through your stress.
  • Stay safe. Plan a safe place for yourself and your children if your loved one becomes violent or abusive.

Preparing for your appointment

If you think that you may have post-traumatic stress disorder, make an appointment with your health care professional or mental health professional. Here's some information to help you prepare for your appointment and know what to expect.

Take a trusted family member or friend along, if possible. Sometimes it can be difficult to remember all the information provided to you.

What you can do

Before your appointment, make a list of:

  • The symptoms that I had, and for how long.
  • Key personal information, especially events or experiences — even in her distant past — that have made you feel intense fear, helplessness, or horror. This will help your healthcare professional know if there are memories that cannot be accessed directly, without feeling an overwhelming need to push out of his mind.
  • Things you have stopped doing, or keeps away from the cause of your stress.
  • Your medical information, including other physical or mental health conditions you have been diagnosed with. Also, include the medications or supplements you are taking and the dose.
  • Questions so that you can make the most of your appointment.

Basic questions to ask your health professional or mental health professional include:

  • What is the cause of my symptoms?
  • There are other possible causes?
  • How are you going to diagnose my disease?
  • Is my condition likely to be short-term or long-term?
  • What treatments are recommended for this condition?
  • Best how to I can manage my other health problems with post-traumatic stress disorder ?
  • How soon do you expect my symptoms to improve?
  • Does PTSD increase the risk of other mental health problems?
  • Do you recommend any changes in the home, the workplace or the school to support the recovery?
  • It would help my recovery to tell my teachers or co-workers about my diagnosis?
  • Is there any material printed on the PTSD that I can have? What sites do you recommend?

Don't hesitate to ask any other questions during your appointment.

What to expect from your doctor

Your healthcare provider will probably ask you several questions, such as:

  • What symptoms are related to you or your loved ones?
  • When you or your loved ones first notice your symptoms?
  • Have you ever been a party or witness a traumatic event?
  • Do you have disturbing thoughts, memories or nightmares of a trauma that you had?
  • Do you stay away from certain people, places or situations that remind you of a traumatic experience?
  • Have you ever had problems in school, at work, or in the way you interact with others?
  • Have you ever thought of harming yourself or others?
  • How often do you consume alcohol or recreational drugs?
  • Have been treated for other mental health symptoms or mental health condition in the past? If yes, what type of therapy was more useful?

Your health care professional or mental health professional will ask more questions based on your responses, symptoms, and needs. You can administer the questionnaires to fill out that asks you about the events that have and your symptoms. Prepare and anticipate questions will help you make the most of your time with a health care professional.

Symptoms and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)