Re: Symptoms of PTSD

[Guest guest]

From the American Psychiatric Association:

http://www.psych.org/public_info/ptsd.cfm

>Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

>Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-once called

>shell shock-affects hundreds of thousands of people who have

>survived earthquakes,

>airplane crashes, terrorist bombings, inner-city violence, domestic

>abuse, rape, war,

>genocide, and other disasters, both natural and human made.

>The Facts

>Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been called shell

>shock or battle fatigue syndrome. It has often been misunderstood or

>misdiagnosed, even

>though the disorder has very specific symptoms.

>Ten percent of the population has been affected at some

>point by clinically diagnosable PTSD. Still more show some symptoms

>of the disorder.

>Although it was once thought to be mostly a disorder of war veterans

>who had been involved

>in heavy combat, researchers now know that PTSD also affects both

>female and male civilians, and that it strikes more females than

>males.

>In some cases the symptoms of PTSD disappear with time,

>whereas in others they persist for many years. PTSD often occurs with-or leads

>to-other psychiatric illnesses, such as depression.

>Everyone who experiences trauma does not require

>treatment; some recover with the help of family, friends, or clergy.

>But many do need

>professional treatment to recover from the psychological damage that

>can result from

>experiencing, witnessing, or participating in an overwhelmingly

>traumatic event.

>Symptoms

>PTSD usually appears within 3 months of the trauma, but

>sometimes the disorder appears later. PTSD's symptoms fall into

>three categories:

>Intrusion

>Avoidance

>Hyperarousal

>Intrusion

>In people with PTSD, memories of the trauma reoccur

>unexpectedly, and episodes called " flashbacks " intrude into their

>current lives.

>This happens in sudden, vivid memories that are accompanied by

>painful emotions that take

>over the victim's attention. This reexperience, or " flashback, " of the

>trauma is a recollection. It may be so strong that individuals

>almost feel like they are

>actually experiencing the trauma again or seeing it unfold before

>their eyes and in

>nightmares.

>Avoidance

>Avoidance symptoms affect relationships with others: The

>person often avoids close emotional ties with family, colleagues,

>and friends. At first,

>the person feels numb, has diminished emotions, and can complete

>only routine, mechanical

>activities. Later, when reexperiencing the event, the individual may

>alternate between the flood of emotions caused by reexperiencing and

>the inability to feel or express emotions

>at all. The person with PTSD avoids situations or activities that

>are reminders of the

>original traumatic event because such exposure may cause symptoms to worsen.

>The inability of people with PTSD to work out grief and

>anger over injury or loss during the traumatic event means the

>trauma can continue to

>affect their behavior without their being aware of it. Depression is

>a common product of

>this inability to resolve painful feelings. Some people also feel

>guilty because they

>survived a disaster while others-particularly friends or family-did not.

>Hyperarousal

>PTSD can cause those who have it to act as if they are

>constantly threatened by the trauma that caused their illness. They

>can become suddenly

>irritable or explosive, even when they are not provoked. They may have trouble

>concentrating or remembering current information, and, because of

>their terrifying

>nightmares, they may develop insomnia. This constant feeling that

>danger is near causes

>exaggerated startle reactions.

>Finally, many people with PTSD also attempt to rid

>themselves of their painful re-experiences, loneliness, and panic

>attacks by abusing

>alcohol or other drugs as a " selfmedication " that helps them to

>blunt their pain

>and forget the trauma temporarily. A person with PTSD may show poor

>control over his or

>her impulses and may be at risk for suicide.

>Treatment

>Today, psychiatrists and other mental health professionals

>have good success in treating the very real and painful effects of PTSD. These

>professionals use a variety of treatment methods to help people with

>PTSD to work through

>their trauma and pain.

>Behavior therapy focuses on correcting the painful and

>intrusive patterns of behavior and thought by teaching people with

>PTSD relaxation

>techniques and examining (and challenging) the mental processes that

>are causing the

>problem.

>Psychodynamic psychotherapy focuses on helping the

>individual examine personal values and how behavior and experience

>during the traumatic

>event affected them.

>Family therapy may also be recommended because the

>behavior of spouse and children may result from and affect the

>individual with PTSD.

>Discussion groups or peer-counseling groups encourage

>survivors of similar traumatic events to share their experiences and

>reactions to them.

>Group members help one another realize that many people would have

>done the same thing and

>felt the same emotions.

>Medication can help to control the symptoms of PTSD.

>The symptom relief that medication provides allows most patients to

>participate more

>effectively in psychotherapy when their condition may otherwise prohibit it.

>Antidepressant medications may be particularly helpful in treating

>the core symptoms of PTSD-especially intrusive symptoms.

>

> Date: Thu, 22 Aug 2002 15:33:07 -0000

>

>Subject: Re: PTSD

>

>So what *are* the symptoms of PTSD? I've seen plenty of WLS folks

>talking about post-op symptoms of depression, sleeplessness,

>frustration, lack of control, fighting with reality (head hunger,

>body image), etc., etc., and these all seem perfectly normal. (That

>is, they happen a lot.) Are these the kinds of symtoms referred to,

>maybe? In that case, I wouldn't be surprised if it *is* common. That

>still wouldn't mean the surgery is " bad, " at least not to me. I knew

>there were risks of both complications and frustrations going into

>this.

>

--

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