Biological Aspect Of Traumatic Stress Disorder ( Ptsd )

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is “a mental condition that can affect a person who has had a very shocking or difficult experience and that is usually characterized by depression, anxiety, etc.” (Merriam-Webster’s, n.d.) Post-traumatic stress disorder can occur after seeing a dangerous event such as war, hurricanes, car accidents, death of a loved one, and violent crimes. It can affect a victim mind, body, and the people around them. While some mental disorders are genetic, this disorder come from the things that people encounter in life. This paper will discuss the risk factor involved with post-traumatic stress disorder as well as treatments that will help overcome it and future research and approaches to treat this psychiatric illness.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a relatively new diagnosis that was associated with survivors of war when it was first introduced. Its diagnosis was met largely with skepticism and dismissal by the public of the validity of the illness. PTSD was only widely accepted when it was included as a diagnosis in 1980 in the third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) of the American Psychiatric Association. PTSD is a complex mental disorder that develops in response to exposure to a severe traumatic event that stems a cluster of symptoms. Being afflicted with the disorder is debilitating, disrupting an individual’s ability to function and perform the most basic tasks.

Because not every traumatised person develops PTSD, researchers are still trying to understand what causes, and increases, the risk of developing PTSD. So far, most of our knowledge of PTSD comes from war survivors, people who lived through concentration camps, and victims of combat from WWII, Korean and Vietnam wars (Bootzin & Ross 1988, p.176). Based on research to date it is believed that PTSD is caused by a combination of several factors including social, biological and psychological and each help contribute to our understanding of the disorder.

Psychological Analysis. When an individual is diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), multiple criteria must be addressed which I will elaborate in the document. When Mr. Wertz was deployed to Iraq in the infantry division, he witnessed the death of a comrade and in his second deployment he had many mortar attacks fulfilling criterion A of PTSD. Conclusively, there was a presence of a trauma while in the army when Mr. Wertz witnessed the death of soldiers in his division. Mr. Wertz recounts having nightmares about his combat. The nightmares are described as reoccurring for the duration of two months. The dream described is Mr. Wertz and his unit being barricaded in a house and being fired at directly;

PTSD is a vast disorder, meaning that it does not have only one cause or treatment. The brain is a complicated and unique part of the body and it can be affected by many different factors. When evaluating the causes of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, it is easy to see that no two cases are exactly the same, a group of people could go through the same event, hurricane Katrina, in New Orleans, for example. Countless people were affected by Katrina, many of them in a similar and yet, every person was emotional and mentally affected differently. Some of them now have PTSD and some do not, this is because every person is different. Factors such as, gender, race, background, affect how a person will react to a traumatic event, which makes PTSD a

It also states that doctors aren’t sure why some people get PTSD and suggests it is a complex mix of: stressful experiences, including the amount and severity of trauma you’ve gone through in your life, inherited mental health risks, such as family history of anxiety or depression, inherited features of your personality or temperament, as well as the way your brain regulates the chemicals and hormones your body releases in response to stress. The most common kinds of traumatic events linked to the development of PTSD include: combat exposure, childhood physical abuse, sexual violence, physical assault, being threatened with a weapon, and an accident. There are many other traumatic events that can lead to PTSD such as fire, natural disaster, mugging, robbery, plane crash, torture, kidnapping, life-threatening medical diagnosis, terrorist attack, and other extreme life-threatening

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is defined as “a mental health condition that's triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event. (1)” This issue is most commonly associated with war veterans who have given their life to the service of the country and have suffered because of it. These men and women suffer emotional, physical, mental, and neurological trauma, which is “a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from severe mental or emotional stress or physical injury(2) ” In fact, the suicide rate of soldiers has increased since last generation, indicating that this is a very serious issue that must be understood from all perspectives. Psychologists, and those who study and help PTSD victims, including loved one of victims, must understand the neurological and spiritual elements

War traumas date back to the Civil War. During the Russo- Japanese War (1904-1905) a Russian psychiatrist compared traumatized train crash survivors and returning war veterans. The train crash survivors were said to have “railway spine”, the doctors believed their anxiety was caused by the compression of the backbone (Frey n.pag). World War I (1914-1918) was the first war that used bombs, fighter airplanes, and chemical warfare. In 1917, Robert Gaupp explained that “the main causes are the fright and anxiety brought about by the explosion of enemy shells and mines” (Scott 550). During World War I the technically term was not PTSD at the time they called it “Shell Shock”. The symptoms of Shell Shock were the inability to hear, talk, stand and walk. In addition the soldier experience “thousand-yard stare” a blank and unfocused expression (Frey n.pag). Conditions like these were called “combat fatigue” or “traumatic war neurosis” during World War II (1939-1945). PTSD affect a lot of the soldiers in the Vietnam War (1954-1975). After the Vietnam War, the term Post-traumatic Stress Disorder was coined, connecting the terms shell shock, combat fatigue, and traumatic war neurosis.

According to PTSD United, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder used to be considered a psychological condition of combat veterans who were “shocked” by and unable to face their experiences from battle. Soldiers with symptoms of PTSD often faced rejection by their military peers and were feared by society in general. Those who showed signs of PTSD were often removed from combat zones and even discharged from military services, being left labeled as weak (“Post Traumatic Stress”). These implications have been debunked by modern day medical professionals who have given a new definition to the illness to help diagnose those who have it. “PTSD is recognized as a psychological mental disorder that can affect survivors not only of combat experience,

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is defined as “a development of characteristic long-term symptoms following a psychologically traumatic event that is generally outside the range of usual human experience” (Nordqvist, 1). Simply put, it is a type of anxiety that affects a patient after a traumatic

These traumatic events overwhelm the mind and the affected is unable to process information and feeling. The individual experiencing PTSD goes through feels and thoughts during their traumatic event that interrupts the mind and causes distress. PTSD is not only related to combat; as shell shock was, but also can occur from a rape, witnessing a murder, combat, and a disaster. A person can also develop post-traumatic stress disorder from seeing or learning about an event, which can cause death or even injury. The person dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder goes through a chemical imbalance that affects their mood and anxiety. These imbalances cause the infected to go through different levels of mental behavior, from avoidance, flashbacks, dreams of the traumatic event, angry outbursts or aggressive behavior and trouble

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can develop after experiencing a dangerous and/or terrifying event (Psychology Today, 2015). PTSD is associated with changes in brain function and structure and these changes provide clues to the causes, treatment, and prevention of PTSD (PTSD United, 2013). This condition can appear at any age and currently affects about 7.7 million American adults (Psychology Today, 2015). Before 1980, the legitimacy of PTSD was debated by the general public as well as health professionals (PTSD United, 2013). At one point in time, it was considered a psychological condition of combat veterans who were dismayed by and unable to deal with their experiences on the battlefield (PTSD United, 2013).

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, otherwise known as PTSD is an anxiety disorder that some people develop after seeing or living through an event that caused or threatened serious harm or death. Symptoms include flashbacks or bad dreams, emotional numbness, intense guilt or worry, angry outbursts, feeling “on edge,” or avoiding thoughts and situations that remind them of the trauma. About 60% of men and 50% of women experience a traumatic event in their lifetime. The reasons why some people develop PTSD are still being studied. There are biological, psychological and social factors that affect the development of PTSD.

PTSD is the abbreviation for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The general classification according to the DSM-V is 309.81 with an Axis I. This disorder is no longer classified as an anxiety disorder rather it is now classified as a trauma and stressor related disorder. That means anyone who experienced (direct exposure), witnessed or was confronted with an event that they might have feared for their life, and or caused serious injury to them, such as a sexual trauma event like rape. This can happen to anyone at any age, it is not just a soldier’s disorder and it haunts them for a very long time. In order to be diagnosed with PTSD there is a criterion that they use to evaluate or meet the individual’s needs for treatment. The

It is the goal of this paper to demonstrate that the phenomenon of PTSD, despite the fact that its multiple emotional and psychosocial effects are constantly being debated, is soundly rooted in neurobiology, and that this aspect of PTSD lends support to the notion that brain = behavior.