Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is where people relive traumatic experiences through nightmares and flashbacks (components of the threatening event are relived as though experiencing the event at the moment), sleeping problems, fear, helplessness and horror. PTSD symptoms can develop from events such as natural disasters, serious accidents, life-threatening illnesses, physical abuse, and sexual assault experienced either in childhood or adulthood.
Because of the trauma that they have went through people with PTSD have a higher probability to suffer from depression, anxiety or phobias.
PTSD is a severe psychiatric disorder that may occur after experiencing a traumatic event that involves actual or threatened death, serious injury or other threats to one’s physical integrity; or witnessing an event that involves death, injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of another person.
Some of these threatening experiences may be rape, physical attack, natural disasters, automobile accidents, military combat, or terrorist attacks.
Although PTSD is common among Veterans and Law Enforcement, every day people can have it too.
About 8% of Americans will experience PTSD at some point in their lives. Women are twice as likely as men to develop PTSD.
PSTD is treatable. A mental health professional should be consulted when an individual experiences any of the following circumstances:
When pain or problems outweigh pleasures much of the time;
When symptoms are so severe and persistent that day-to-day functioning is impaired; and/or
When stress seems so overwhelming that suicide seems to be a viable option.
Qualified mental health professionals can help identify the causes and sources of PTSD and can help the individual find ways to overcome them.