Post-traumatic stress disorder is a disorder that comes under the diagnostic category of trauma and stressor-related disorder, as the development of this disorder involves the experience of major stress.
Several criteria are required to be fulfilled to get the diagnosis of PTSD (which need to be present for more than a month):
- It involves the presence of serious injury, exposure to threatened or actual death or sexual violence. This involves direct experience of these events, or witnessing such events happening to one’s closed ones.
- It involves having recurring memories of the traumatic event and flashbacks.
- The person makes an effort to avoid any stimuli related to the traumatic event, which could involve people, places, or certain situations that remind the person of the traumatic event.
- There are negative changes in the person’s thoughts and mood. They might have persistent negative beliefs about themselves, others and the world. They might have negative emotions such as guilt, fear or shame. In addition, they might be unable to experience positive emotions.
- There are changes in their reactivity and arousal level. They might show hypervigilance, sleep disturbances, and reckless or self-destructive behavior.
It’s important to remember that PTSD involves the direct experience of traumatic event, or witnessing it happen to a loved one. It doesn’t involve the indirect experience of watching distressing events on electronic media.
Not everyone who experiences trauma is at a risk of developing PTSD. Some of the individual risk factors involve less social support, neuroticism, family history of depression and anxiety or having concerns related to depression and anxiety. Also, the perception of people towards the event plays a role. If they blame themselves, or see themselves as weak for experiencing the symptoms, it might increase the risk of developing PTSD.
The treatment of PTSD involves crisis intervention. The aim of crisis therapy is to alleviate the symptoms, and to focus on the immediate problem. Plans of action and coping resources are provided to the person to help them gain better control over their situation.
Cognitive behavioral therapy can also prove effective for treating PTSD. The behavioral aspect of CBT involves prolonged exposure. The person is asked to remember the traumatic experience repeatedly, until there is a decrease in the intensity of their emotional responses. The person can also be asked to do this with stimuli associated to the trauma. Also, relaxation training can be done to ease the person’s anxiety associated with the traumatic event. The cognitive aspect of CBT involves identifying the thought distortions and to modify the negative appraisals the person might have made about their trauma.
If you or your loved ones have experienced adverse events, and are experiencing the above-mentioned symptoms, please seek out professional support at Veda Rehab and Wellness Center on +8151830000. The team of expert professionals, consisting of psychologists and psychiatrists, will help you to overcome your trauma and guide you on your journey toward living a fulfilling and happy life.
Written by:
Monalisa Kar
In-house Psychologist
Veda Rehab and Wellness Center