The Developmental Psychopathological Approach to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Introduction This report endeavours to provide a Developmental Psychopathological Approach of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Developmental Psychopathology is broadly conceptualised as depicting the dynamic processes underlying ‘typical’ child development (Campbell, Cummings & Patrick,2003). An awareness of ‘typical’ and ‘atypical’ developmental characteristics at varied ages and developmental stages is crucial for parents and health professionals. Through the use of developmental psychopathology, clinicians and parents are able to gain an insight into children’s behaviour, as well as acknowledge assessments, therapeutic planning and treatments …show more content…
In general, children who experience a single-occurring trauma display symptoms of PTSD within a year. In some cases this can be delayed and re-emerge in later life. The diagnosis of PTSD originated in the 1980s’s when war veterans displayed symptoms. PTSD was consequently only conceptualised for traumatised adults in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (APA, 2013).However, recent studies proposed that children and adolescents between 1-18 years old show distinct symptoms that contribute to the development of PTSD. As a result, the DSM -5 issued a new sub-type criterion for Preschool children under the age of six. These core symptoms are divided into four clusters: re-experiencing, emotional numbing, avoidance and hyper-arousal (APA,2013). Individuals must display at least one symptom from each cluster for one month or longer and it must cause significant distress to the child’s development. Children with PTSD may re-experience the trauma through intrusive forms of thought, flashbacks, nightmares and emotional or physical distress. Young children tend to generalise recurring nightmares into unrecognisable content, such as monsters. In addition, children may experience the trauma through repetitive play, re-enactment and destructive behaviour. The second cluster is avoidance patterns. This refers to children avoiding distressing thoughts, feelings and reminders of the
Children experiencing PTSD can experience wetting of the bed, loss or inability to speak, acting out the event, or being very clingy with another parent or child.” (“Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder”) C. Main Point Three – Though there is not yet a cure for this disorder, there are many treatment options
Assessment of the core emotional needs underpinning complex behaviour is paramount for intervention to be effective (Cairns, 2002). An immense challenge for client’s who have experienced abuse is that their developmental growth is affected and they struggle for autonomy, independence and identity without a secure base (Daniel, Wassail, & Gilligan, 2002). They are struggling to execute developmental tasks with abilities and skills that have been damaged by
However, Diaz and Motta focused their study on adolescent participants and on PTSD. For this study, participants were between the ages of 14 and 17 and were all female from a residential treatment facility that met the criteria for PTSD (Diaz & Motta, 2008). The researchers used the following self-report inventories to measure the level of PTSD: (a) Child PTSD Symptom Scale [CPSS] (Foa, Johnson, Feeny, & Treadwell, 2001), (b) Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children [TSCC] (Briere, 1996), (c) Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children [MASC] (March, 1997), (d) Children’s Depression Inventory [CDI] (Kovacs, 1992) (Diaz & Motta, 2008).
One example of Boricevic Marsanic and their colleagues is, “Children of male veterans have a higher chance of attempting suicide” (Boricevic Marsanic et. al.).This quote explains how the disorder affects children who may never have a traumatic experience in their life. The disorder has mental effects on all the people associated, the veteran, their family, friends, everybody. Another example of how PTSD affects children and teens is “The presence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in trauma survivors has been linked with family dysfunction and symptoms in their children, including lower self-esteem, higher disorder rates, and symptoms resembling those of the traumatized parent” (Mellor et. al.). Mellor and the other authors of this article in an Australian magazine express how children tend to have more problems internally. The quote also states how the children may even have symptoms the parent with PTSD had, which means that it could cause problems for the child without them even having a traumatic moment in their
The counselor selected a diagnosis based on the use of the Child assessment form and the Behavioral checklist and the reports on his case notes and present a diagnosis of 301.81 (F43.10) Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) American Psychiatric Association, Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 5th ed,( 2013). This diagnosis was established because the client does show symptoms of distress in his interactions at home. Children who are exposed to intense fear and anxiety, after experiencing traumatic or life-threatening event and may feel fearful and anxious as well as ‘emotionally numb, do become angry withdrawn and irritable. Catani and Sossalla, (2015) noted that children who undergo abuse in a traumatic way will have PTSD. They also sometimes avoid people, places that remind them of the
It is normal, following a traumatic experience, for a person to feel disconnected, anxious, sad and frightened. However, if the distress does not fade and the individual feels stuck with a continuous sense of danger as well as hurting memories, then that person might in fact be suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PSTD could develop after a traumatic incident which threatens one’s safety or makes one to feel helpless (Dalgleish, 2010). Coping with traumatic events could be very difficult, but confronting one’s feelings and seeking professional assistance is usually the only way to properly treat PSTD. Many kids and adolescents worldwide experience events that are traumatizing. If exposure to trauma is not treated, it could lead to various mental health problems. Researchers have reported a connection between traumatization and increases in mood and anxiety disorders, but the most frequently reported symptoms of psychological distress are post-traumatic stress symptoms (Cohen, Mannarino & Iyengar, 2011).
Childhood and adolescence is a crucial time for humans- a time full of physical, emotional, and cognitive development. Upon observing the significant impact that trauma induced stress can have on adults following time in combat or an injury, when adults have fully matured in all areas, it raises the question of what influence post-traumatic stressors can have on development in children. This issue was so significant that in the DSM-5, the psychologists introduced a new, and separate, section of criteria for PTSD that specifically relates to the preschool subtype, or those individuals six years and younger. The first age specific sub-type for this disorder is important due to the rising number of studies and cases of PTSD in children.
When living with PTSD, there are outbreaks of panic and intense thoughts that relate to the event. (Parekh) These come from flashbacks and nightmares that lead to sadness, fear, anger, and a feeling of detachment. “But at night some of us would wake up from nightmares, sweating, screaming, and punching our own heads to drive out the images that continued to torment us even when we were no longer asleep.” (Beah 148) A diagnosis comes from exposure to an event that causes the victim enough trauma to have these types of episodes. These children soldiers are exposed to a large amount of violence within common massacres and village raids, desensitizing them to the act, and not be aware of the acts. Everything these kids go through in war leaves them with many traumatic memories that lead to PTSD, causing harsh flashbacks and nightmares that lead to hurting themselves and
Also, like adults, they can recover just as easily with therapy sessions and techniques. This is just a preview of what kind of research is being done in order to combat this issue with adolescents that have PTSD. The next step into the paper is to show if children are more resilient than adults or how does PTSD affect the development of children’s mental and physical
The lasting trauma of being child soldiers creates atrocious PTSD. Child PTSD is an ongoing issue that needs to be addressed because people are experiencing traumatic flashbacks that are triggered by memories which bring them back
Looking at how PTSD affects Americans, Jessica Hamblen, writer for the U.S. Department of Veteran affairs, states, “there are a number of psychiatric disorders that are commonly found in children and adolescents who have been traumatized” (Hamblen).
To obtain the measures of the study Hukkelberg used different trauma detections. One of the measures Hukkelberg used was” The Traumatic Events Screening Inventory for Children” (as cited in Ford et al., 2000). “The Traumatic Events Screening Inventory for Children was used to assess trauma experiences” (as cited in Ford et al., 2000). “The Traumatic Events Screening Inventory” (as cited in Ford et al.,2000) assed how serious the trauma experiences were that the child went through. The screening was a checklist that included these experiences “severe accident, natural disaster, sudden death or severe illness of a close person, extremely painful medical procedures, violence outside the family context, witnessing violence within the family physical abuse within the family, sexual abuse inside and outside the family, and other overwhelming experiences” (as cited in Ford et al., 2000). The study had the children rate how many times they were involved in from 0 to 3 (p. 263). “The 0= Not at all, 1 Once a week or less/once in a while, 2= 2 to 4 times a week/ half of the time, and 3= 5 or more times a week/ almost always” (Hukkelberg, 2013). If a child circled a three to all or almost all of the experiences they were involved in they were assessed for posttraumatic stress disorder systems (p. 263).
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that may develop after an exposure to a terrifying event in which physical harm occurred or was threatened. Usually, the anxiety may be brought on by an “exposure to an actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violence “(American Psychiatric Association, 2013, pg. 271). Only recently have children and youth been deemed to have experienced PTSD and usually undergo therapy, medication and various treatment options to minimize the impact PTSD has on one’s life. Throughout this paper, I will be discussing the development of the disorder, how PTSD symptoms differ in children, treatment options, and a clinical case example.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects 7.7 million American adults and can also occur during childhood. PTSD is an anxiety disorder that stems from a recent emotional threat such as a natural, disaster, war, and car accidents. PTSD usually occurs from an injury or coming close death. A person who has experienced a past traumatic event has a heightened chance of being diagnosed with PTSD after a current trauma. PTSD can also be determined by looking at one’s genes, different emotions, and current or past family setting. Normally, when a person without PTSD goes through a traumatic event the body releases stress hormones, which in time returns back to normal; However, a person with PTSD releases stress hormones that do not return
PTSD is a form of dissociation and involves two distinct parts that effect the consciousness and behavior of an adolescent. “One is numb and avoidant of traumatic memories, but more or less functional in daily life, and another is enmeshed in traumatic memories” (Diseth 83). These elements of dissociation cause attachment and adaptive disorders that will perpetrate further harm to the adolescent. Trauma is related to other behaviors in adolescents, such s numbing, social withdrawal, separation anxiety and new fears.