Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Post traumatic stress disorder is an emotional illness that that is classified as an anxiety disorder and usually develops as a result of a terribly frightening, life-threatening, or otherwise highly unsafe experience.  Sufferers experience the traumatic event or events in some way, tend to avoid places, people, or other things that remind them of the event, and are exquisitely sensitive to normal life experiences.  Although this condition has likely existed since human beings have endured trauma, Post traumatic stress disorder has only been recognized as a formal diagnosis since 1980.  In World War I, symptoms that were generally consistent with this syndrome were referred to as combat fatigue. Soldiers who developed such symptoms in World War II and many troops in Vietnam who had symptoms of what is now called post traumatic stress were diagnosed as having post Vietnam syndrome. Post traumatic stress has also been called battle fatigue and shell shocked

Post traumatic stress disorder usually results from prolonged exposure to a traumatic event or series thereof and is characterized by long-lasting problems with many aspects of emotional and social functioning.

Untreated post traumatic stress can have devastating, consequences for victim’s functioning and relationships, their families, and for society. Symptoms in women with post traumatic stress disorder who are pregnant include having other emotional problems, poor health behaviors, and memory problems. Women who were sexually abused at early ages are more likely develop post traumatic stress disorder and borderline personality disorder. Babies who are born to mothers who suffer from this illness during pregnancy are more likely to experience a change in at least one chemical in their body that predisposes the child to develop post traumatic stress disorder later in life. Individuals who suffer from this illness are at risk of having more medical problems, as well as fertility problems. Emotionally, a person may have to struggle more to achieve as good an outcome from treatment than people with other emotional problems. In children and teens, post traumatic stress disorder can have significantly negative effects on their social and emotional development, as well as on their ability to learn.
Treatments usually include psychological and medicine.  Education on the illness, helping the individual manage the trauma by talking about it directly, teaching the person ways to manage symptoms, and exploration and modification of inaccurate ways of thinking about the trauma are the usual techniques used in psychotherapy for this illness.
Teaching people with post traumatic stress disorder practical approaches to coping with what can be very intense and disturbing symptoms has been found to be effective.   Helping the person learn how to manage their anger and anxiety, improve their communication skills, and use breathing and other relaxation techniques can help individuals gain a sense of mastery over their emotional and physical symptoms.  Therapy by having the person recall their traumatic experiences using images or verbal recall while using the coping mechanisms they learned is sometimes beneficial.
Medications that have shown to be effective for managing this disorder include mood stabilizers; as well as mood stabilizers that are also antipsychotics. Antipsychotic medicines seem to be most useful in the treatment in those who suffer from agitation, dissociation, paranoia, or brief psychotic reactions. The antipsychotic medications are also being increasingly found to be helpful treatment options for managing the disorder when used in combination with an antidepressant.
Families of individuals, as well as the person, may benefit from family counseling, couple's counseling, and Parenting classes.   Family members may also be able to provide a history about the person; for example, about emotions and behaviors, drug abuse, sleeping habits, and socialization that people with the illness are unable or unwilling to share.
The sleep problems have been found to be alleviated by; rehearsing adaptive ways of coping with nightmares, training in relaxation techniques, positive self-talk, and screening for other sleep problems.

Some ways that are often suggested for patients to cope with this illness include learning more about the disorder as well as talking to friends, family, professionals, and other survivors for support.  Reducing stress by using relaxation techniques : breathing exercises, positive imager, actively participating in treatment as recommended by professionals, increasing positive lifestyle practices, exercise, healthy eating, distracting oneself through maintaining  a healthy work schedule if employed, volunteering, and decrease  negative lifestyle practices like, social isolation, working to excess, and self-destructive or suicidal behavior.