Effects Of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

The four symptoms of this mental illness consists of “reliving the event through memories or nightmares, avoiding situations that remind you of the event, negative changes in beliefs and feelings (fear, guilt, shame, etc.) and being hyperarousal (jittery, on the lookout for danger, trouble concentrating and sleeping)” (“PTSD”).

Some symptoms of PTSD include uncontrollable flashbacks/hallucinations and thoughts in which the body can seize up and even shut down (as if the experience is happening again), feelings of worry, guilt or sadness, feeling alone, trouble sleeping and/or nightmares, being on edge, depression, angry outbursts, and thoughts of hurting one’s self or others. As one can see, PTSD is a matter of high seriousness.

The symptoms of PTSD, while generally not life threatening, can be very distressing and have serious effects on a person’s health and well-being. There are three classes of symptoms related to PTSD, re-experiencing symptoms, avoidance symptoms, and hyperarousal symptoms. The re-experiencing symptoms are generally flashbacks, bad dreams and frightening thoughts. These symptoms are produced from the persons own thoughts and can be triggered by anything reminding them of the experience. The second classification of symptoms are called the avoidance symptoms and they include staying away from places and other objects that remind the person of the experience, as well as feeling strong guilt, depression, worry, emotional numbness, and a loss of interest in the world around you. The final classification, hyperarousal symptoms, includes being easily startled, feeling tense, having angry outbursts, and insomnia. These symptoms are

There are four main signs to know that a person is dealing with PTSD. The first symptom of the disorder is reliving the event. Whatever frightening event occurred to cause the disorder can be relived over and over. These memories may come from nightmares or flashbacks. They are capable of occurring extremely often. However the flashbacks do not usually come about on their own. There is most likely something called a trigger that forces the person’s brain to relive the traumatic event. The person may see, hear, or smell

The term "intimate partner violence" describes physical violence, sexual violence, stalking and psychological aggression (including coercive acts) by a current or former intimate partner ("Intimate Partner Violence: Definitions," n.d.). Veterans who experience intimate partner violence are deprived of their autonomy, liberty, and security, and face tremendous threats to their health and safety. Awareness and identification of IPV among Veterans has been increasing over the past decade. Veterans are at greater risk for using and/or experiencing violence than their civilian counterparts, given the unique stressors posed by military life. In particular, those who have served in the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan may be at even higher

Some experiences, like the sudden, unexpected death of a loved one, can also cause PTSD. Symptoms usually begin early, within 3 months of the traumatic incident, but sometimes they begin years afterward. To be diagnosed with PTSD, a person must have at least one reexperiencing symptom, one avoidance symptom, two arousal and reactivity symptoms, or two cognition and mood symptoms. A few examples of re-experiencing symptoms would include flashbacks, bad dreams, and frightening thoughts. These symptoms can start from the person’s own thoughts and feelings and may cause problems in a person’s everyday routine. Signs of avoidance symptoms could be staying away from places, events, or objects that are reminders of the experience, and avoiding thoughts or feelings related to the traumatic event. For example, if someone were to witness or be involved in the event of a robbery, they might try to stay away from that store because they don’t want to have to be reminded of the memory. Arousal and reactivity symptoms include being easily startled, feeling tense or “on edge,” having difficulty sleeping, and having angry outbursts. These symptoms will constantly remind the person of the event, and may make it hard for them to sleep, eat, or concentrate during their daily life. Cognition and mood symptoms can make the person feel alienated or detached from friends or family members. They can cause people to lose interest in

As mentioned previously those who have experienced trauma or have witnessed a dramatic event may experience flashbacks, irritability, chronic sadness or depression, feelings of anxiety, and feeling as if you are overwhelmed with stress. The three most common symptoms of a post-traumatic stress disorder are re-experiencing, avoidance and numbing, and hyperarousal.

In recent years there has been much dispute over the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, on the armed forces. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a medical condition that affects the physiology of the brain. It commonly affects those who have experienced or witnessed stressful events, such as war. PTSD was generally referred to as “shell-shock” in the military, until an improved and more inclusive definition of the disease was discovered. Wartime environments contain a multitude of factors which are all potential causes of PTSD such as duress accredited to resounding explosions, pressure to survive, being far from home, and moral injury. Even though PTSD manifests itself so frequently in soldiers, there is little care provided for treatment of PTSD. This is a dangerous issue considering the close link between PTSD, suicide, and depression. Readily available, empathetic, and compassionate health care is a necessity for combatting this illness. Soldiers fight to protect the lives of American citizens, and deserve to be protected by those for whom they fought. The military should provide more funding, and better, more available health care for their soldiers because of the rise of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in the armed services and the unfavorable effects it has on the armed services.

People who suffer from PTSD may look for resources, which can help them forget about their experiences, “People experience a range of reactions following trauma. Most people recover fine, given a little time. However, a small but noteworthy number go on to develop more serious, chronic problems, like PTSD.”(PTSD: National Center for PTSD) When one has the opportunity to erase certain memories it can be something one might look into. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder can be life changing for one, therefore there are people who look for ways in which to erase bad memories but don’t know the consequences from the decision.

The Mayo Clinic defines PTSD as, “a mental health condition that is triggered by a terrifying event.” These events can be personal inflicted on the person or witness by a person. For anyone who experiences a traumatic event readjustment can be difficult and a long process but those that receive help can make a recovery. For those that the have lasting symptoms or have symptoms that get worse they may be diagnosed with PTSD. The symptoms of PTSD are intrusive memories, avoidance, negative changes in thinking and mood, and/or changes in emotional reactions. Reminders or stressors of the traumatic event can lead to intensity in PTSD symptoms. There are 5 most common kinds of traumatic events that could lead to PTSD, two of which are child neglect and abuse and sexual abuse.

The Things They Carried, is about soldiers in the middle of the Vietnam War just trying to survive. These soldiers carried many things ranging from the physical items of war to the emotional and mental stress that comes along with the terrifying events of war. “They carried all they could bear, and then some, including a silent awe for the terrible power of the things they carried.”(O’Brien 7) I believe that O’brien gives detailed examples of PTSD, even in his own life.

Many people experiencing P.T.S.D. experience it as a result of seeing a loved one injured or killed (Regehr 676). By seeing his brother Allie die of Leukemia at the age of 11, Holden experiences trauma. According to studies, the degrees of symptoms depend on the proximity of trauma exposure and the number of which one is exposed to (676). Holden’s trauma was very severe because it was his brother, who he was very close to, that passed away. In addition to experiencing his brother’s death, Holden also encounters a boy, James Castle, who jumps to his death while wearing Holden’s sweater (Salinger 170). Holden has been faced with two traumatic events in his life, one involving a person very close to him, therefore, this significantly increases his risk of P.T.S.D.

Symptoms of PTSD are categorized in four different types. The first one is reliving the traumatic event. This could involve flashbacks, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts. The second type is avoidance. They tend to avoid things that remind them of the traumatic event whether it be people, places, or even emotions. The third type is emotional numbing. They may detach themselves from loved ones, or become less interested in activities that interested them before. The final type is increased arousal. This type is common in returning veterans. They may experience increased anger and irritability and difficulty sleeping. Other symptoms could include feeling jumpy or easily startled. PTSD wasn’t recognized until 1980 as a mental disorder even though the symptoms have been observed for many years prior to this time.

PTSD consist of a whole list of multiple symptoms, most common categories are intrusive, avoidant, and hyperarousal. Intrusive symptoms are re-experiencing traumatic events. Common intrusive symptoms consist of distressing recollections, flashbacks, nightmares, feeling anxious or fearful. Flashbacks can make a person feel as if he or she is back in combat while awake. Nightmares are frequent recurrent combat images while he or she is sleeping. Lastly, feeling anxious or fearful make he or she feel as if they are back in the combat zone itself, again.

Ever wondered how it feels to suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress disorder (PTSD)? PTSD has a psychological effect on anyone who has been through a traumatic event. The psychological effects include, anxiety, depression, and sleeping disorder.