Ptsd Case Study

Post-traumatic stress disorder abbreviated PTSD is a response to traumatic events in someone’s life. Traumatic events are events that provoke fear, helplessness or horror in response to a threat or extreme stressor (Yehuda, 2002). Soldiers and other military members are at a much higher risk to Post traumatic stress disorder due to combat and other stressful situations they are put into. People effected by Post-traumatic stress disorder will have symptoms including flashbacks, avoidance of things, people or places that remind them of the traumatic event. Also, hyper arousal which includes insomnia, irritability, impaired concentration and higher startle reactions. In this paper I will discuss post-traumatic stress disorder, its signs, symptom and effects on culture as portrayed in the movie, American Sniper.

The DSM 4 requires that certain criteria be met for a person to be diagnosed with PTSD.

"Post Traumatic Stress Disorder." Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs, 2007. Web. 07 Apr. 2014.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has severely affected the lives of countless military veterans throughout the years. Consequently, there likely are many more PTSD cases that exist and go unreported, or misdiagnosed due to misconceptions when reported (Samuelson, Bartel, Jordan, & Valadez, 2017). To this extent, I am going to discuss my views on two articles. The first article explains the patient’s perceptions of PTSD symptoms. The second article explains the effects of performing Yoga as an unconventional form of treatment for PTSD patients. Each study was conducted on the men and women veterans of our Armed Forces. As citizens of the United States of America, we owe the Armed Forces a debt of

PTSD, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, is a mental health condition that can occur after a person experiences a traumatic event such as disasters, assault or combat. This is an issue that many Veterans encounter while being involved in military duty. However, there is help available.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychological condition that can follow a traumatic incident (Emory). PTSD can stem from a variety of traumatic events, such as sexual assault, floods, being kidnapped, and major catastrophes like 9/11 (PTSD: A Growing Epidemic). A major symptom of PTSD is re-experiencing trauma by either distressing thoughts or memories, and sometimes by vivid flashbacks in the most severe cases. Other symptoms can include increased anxiety and paranoia, depression, or avoiding situations where flashbacks can be triggered. An estimated 5% of men and 10% of women experience some form of PTSD in their lives (Emory). However, in a smaller demographic, veterans, The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs have estimated

Many who suffer from PTSD will likely notice that they have all suffered greatly. "Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon, 43 came in one of those buses in November 2004 and spent several weeks in the Walter Reed's hospital. His eye and skull were shattered by an AK-47 rounds" (Priest). In other words, some of the injuries that occur are worse than other. They can also affect the victim and their family's lives. Next, families of those who have dealt with PTSD typically see the emotional trauma of combat that soldiers experience. "A 49 year old veteran explained that he suffered from paranoia in crowds. Nightmares and unrelenting flashbacks from the Iraq war. He said he needed his handgun to feel secure and worried that he would shoot somebody. For those affected, they do what they think they need to do to protect themselves and their family. Finally, because of the number of people suffering from PTSD impacts the people they are around and their relationships with them. Ted, a veteran from the Vietnam war, became increasingly withdrawn from his family and friends. He could only sleep for hour or two before the war nightmares came to him. He was desperate to get rid of the dark cloud that grew inside him. Within two years of returning from Vietnam, Ted committed suicide; a tragic end to a career officer's life that may not have occurred if he or those around him knew about PTSD" (Saperstein). Therefore, when PTSD gets ignored it can lead to losing the life of a loved one. In conclusion, veterans who suffer from PTSD struggle with finding jobs, dealing with PTSD, family, and

This accident, along with losing close friends, and seeing others die, has left him traumatized. Although, his PTSD is not as severe as other solders, it still affects him in his day to day activities.

For the next eight months, I was stationed with Patrick and a number of others like him who had transferred from being an NCM to officer by route of attending RMC. Many of them had seen recent active service in Afghanistan and some of them, including Patrick, were experiencing symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD is a psychological response to intense traumatic events, primarily those that are life threatening (Veterans Affairs, 2006 p.1). Although ancient in its idea PTSD was only recognized by the American

PTSD is diagnosed by discussing symptoms in therapeutic or psychiatric evaluations (Nordqvist, 5). A person with PTSD must pass the criteria listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM) published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) in order to be officially diagnosed (Ibid, 5). Once diagnosed, treatment can become an option.

There are three symptoms a patient must exemplify to be diagnosed with PTSD. These symptoms are re-experiencing symptoms, avoidance symptoms, and hyper-vigilance. Re-experiencing symptoms are where the PTSD patient will relive the traumatic event through flashbacks, nightmares and memories. A certain sight, smell, sound, or feeling the person gets at a random point throughout their day that could remind them of the traumatic experience is what can tigger these helpless reoccurrences. Some flashbacks can be so extreme that the person loses all their senses and only can see, hear, or smell what they felt at the time of the accident. They are no longer aware of the real world and cannot tell the difference of what is real and what is not (Thomas )

been deemed breakthrough therapy by the Food and Drug Administration. The introduction of promising research from ecstasy to treat PTSD has allowed doors for researchers to begin working with LSD which is commonly called magic mushrooms that have shown a lot of promise in producing affective medications for combating PTSD. Along with these promising medications we also need to look at the home life of the veterans, a lot of veterans are either very old and have little family or do not have that family support system that are crucial in the healing process. Receiving treatment and therapy is crucial but if you do not have a strong support system it would be easy for veterans to slip down through the cracks which would allow PTSD to win the

Diagnostic criteria for PTSD includes a history of exposure to a traumatic event that meets specific stipulations and symptoms from each of the four symptom clusters included in the DSM-5: intrusion, avoidance, negative alterations in cognition and mood, and alterations in arousal and activity. The sixth criterion concerns duration of symptoms; the seventh assesses functioning; and, the eighth criterion clarifies symptoms as not attributable to a substance or co-occurring medical condition.

disorder as a result of the abuse that took place.’ ("Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder | Canadian Mental Health Association BC Division," 2013, para 3). This crisis he faced led to a failure of coping mechanisms including: abusing alcohol, being haunted by feelings of abandonment by their parents through Stockholm Syndrome (Fontaine, 2010, pg. 132), social anxiety, and his inferiority complex.

According to a Tanielian and Jaycox (2008) study, as of September 2014 there were approximately 2.7 million American veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars”. Of the 2.7 million at least 20% of the veterans in Iraq and Afghanistan wars obtained PTSD and/or depression. However, it was noted that when interviewed, the military counselors stated that they believe that the percentage rate of veterans with PTSD was much higher. The number is said to continue to increase when combined with traumatic brain injury (TBI).