PTSD Central

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that is caused by the brain’s inability to process the memory of a traumatic event. Anxiety and depression commonly affect people who have post-traumatic stress disorder.

PTSD is an anxiety disorder. The PTSD symptoms and coping with trauma can cause depression and more anxiety. People with PTSD may experience agoraphobia and panic attacks.

The trauma that causes this disorder is a life-threatening event. The trauma can be interpersonal violence, a car accident, war, domestic violence, natural disasters, or any other event during which the person felt that his or her life was threatened.

It is common for the person not to be able to remember parts of the traumatic event. The person may develop insomnia, feel emotionally distant, and have difficulty concentrating.

Hypervigilance is a symptom of PTSD. When someone is hypervigilant, the person is nervous and on edge. PTSD causes an exaggerated startle reflex.

Often, the PTSD causes the person to avoid certain situations that may resemble where the traumatic event took place and discussions about the trauma. The person may experience flashbacks and dreams about the events that caused the PTSD.

A PTSD flashback is the replay of the memory of the traumatic event that caused the PTSD. The flashback is the brain’s way of trying to integrate the memory of the memory of the trauma normally into the person’s long-term memory.

Diagnosing PTSD is done with a PTSD screening. A PTSD test may be given which asks about the symptoms that the person may be experiencing in order to determine if the person has this disorder.

Traditional posttraumatic stress disorder treatments include prescription medications and therapy. Home treatment, herbal supplements, and self-care can help the person recover from PTSD and manage the symptoms of anxiety and depression.

There are different types of PTSD. Some psychological experts recognize a form of this condition called complex PTSD. This PTSD type is caused by ongoing abuse such as might be experienced with soldiers held in POW camps or children with repeated abuse in the home.

Standard PTSD types are categorized by the onset of the symptoms and severity. This disorder can be categorized as acute, chronic, or with delayed onset. Acute PTSD causes the symptoms for up to three months after the trauma.

Chronic PTSD describes those traumatic stress disorder that has the films that persists longer than three months. PTSD with delayed onset occurs when six months or more have lapsed after the trauma before the person experienced any PTSD symptoms.

There is no cure for PTSD. Some people with PTSD attempt to self medicate with drugs and alcohol which can lead to addiction problems in addition to the PTSD.

PTSD can affect people of all ages. This disorder may affect up fifteen percent the population of the United States.