PTSD
By: Darby McNeal, Kirsti Barton, Dawson Ford
What is PTSD?
Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, is a condition in which a person who has experienced a traumatic event feels severe and long-lasting aftereffects. This disorder is common among veterans of military combat and survivors of acts of terrorism, natural disasters, catastrophes like plane crashes, and human aggression such as rape and assault. PTSD may begin immediately after the occurrence of the traumatic event or it may develop later.1 kbarton
Symptoms
Another people might be avoiding situations that remind this person of an event. They may avoid big crowds, because they feel dangerous, or avoid driving if they had been in a car crash. Avoiding these can lessen the occurrence of the triggers.
Some people fight have negative changes in beliefs and feelings. This is a way they think about themselves and others changes because of a trauma. This may mean that they may not have positive or loving feelings toward other people, or may forget parts of a traumatic event and not be bale to talk about them.
Another tragic event that can happen is that they feel keyed up in another words hyper-arousal. They may become jittery or always on alert or looking out for danger. For example they may have a hard time sleeping or concentrating due to the event.
How it affects adults, men, women and children.
Treatments
Cognitive behavioral therapy, CBT, is one type of counseling patients can receive. CBT appears to be the most effective therapy for PTSD. Another therapy is exposure therapy and the goal with that therapy is to have less fear about memories. By talking about the trauma repeatedly patients can learn to get control of their thoughts and feelings about the event. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, EMDR, is a third type of treatment therapy for PTSD. It can help you change how you react to memories of the event. In this therapy while you think or talk about the memories patients focus on other stimuli like eye movements, hand taps, and sounds. The therapist may move their hand near the patient’s face and the patient would follow the movement with their eyes. There are other types of therapy out there but these are the major ones.2kbarton
There is a medication called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, SSRIs, and it is a type of antidepressant. This medication can help patients feel less and worried. SSRIs include medicines like citalopram, (Celexa), fluoxetine, (like Prozac), paroxetine, (Paxil), and sertraline, (Zoloft).2kbarton
Self Diagnosis
Where to get help in Springfield, IL
Sources
2. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs website
3. Vietnam Veterans of America website