What is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder?
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health problem you may develop after experiencing traumatic events. It is an anxiety disorder caused by very stressful, frightening or distressing events.Someone with PTSD often relives the traumatic event through nightmares and flashbacks, and may experience feelings of isolation, irritability and guilt. Many people find that these symptoms disappear within a few weeks, but if your symptoms last for longer than a month, you might be given a diagnosis of PTSD.
Causes of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Any situation that a person finds traumatic can cause PTSD. These can include:
- serious road accidents
- violent personal assaults, such as sexual assault, mugging or robbery
- serious health problems
- childbirth experiences
Symptoms
Re-experiencing Symptoms
Re-experiencing is the most typical symptom of PTSD & C-PTSD. This is when a person involuntarily and vividly relives the traumatic event.
- Flashbacks—reliving the traumatic event, and feeling like it happening right now including physical symptoms such as a racing heart or sweating
- Recurring memories or nightmares related to the event
- Distressing and intrusive thoughts or images
- Physical sensations like sweating, trembling, pain or feeling sick.
Feeling and Mood Symptoms
The way you think about yourself and others may change because of the trauma
- Trouble remembering key features of the traumatic event
- Feeling like you can’t trust anyone
- Overwhelming negative emotions, such as fear, sadness, anger, guilt, or shame
- Loss of interest in previous activities
- Feeling like nowhere is safe
How can I support myself?
There are some things that you can do to support your recovery if you have PTSD. Your therapist will help to support you with these things and make sure you do them at the right time:
- Keeping to your routine – If possible, try to get back to or stay in your usual routine. Keeping your life as normal as possible can give you a sense of grounding
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Talk to someone you trust – While you shouldn’t feel like you have to talk about what happened with just anyone, talking to someone you trust can help you to process your feelings in a safe space. It might also help to speak to someone who experienced the same thing that you did, or who has experienced a similar event before, if doing so is not too distressing.
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Eat and exercise regularly – Try to eat when you usually would, even if you don’t feel hungry. If you feel able, try to take regular exercise. This can also help you to feel more tired when it’s time for you to sleep.
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Spend time with others – Taking time to be with the people you care about can give you a sense of support.
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Go back to where the traumatic event happened – Only when you feel able to do this, you might want to go back to where the traumatic event happened. Talk to your therapist or doctor if you are planning to do this, so they can support you with this step.
Reference:
https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/overview/
https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd-and-complex-ptsd/about-ptsd/
https://www.ptsduk.org/
https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mental-health/problems-disorders/post-traumatic-stress-disorder
