3 Things You Need to Know about PTSD
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is a psychiatric disorder that occurs when a person experiences or witnesses a life-threatening or traumatic event like natural disasters, accidents causing fatalities, physical or sexual abuse, and military combat. It is characterized by fear, sleeplessness, and even inability to perform certain daily tasks when the memories of the incident are brought to the person's consciousness. While many people suffer from PTSD, there are still many more who are unaware of the condition. Find out what you need to know about PTSD by reading through this short list.
1. It Can't Just Be Forgotten - Unlike a break-up, a divorce, or the slow and expected death of a close friend or relative, the incidents that cause developmental trauma disorder can't simple be forgotten. Lots of people tell those who suffer from PTSD to just "get over it", but the process of moving on takes a lot more than just that. PTSD can affect the chemistry of the brain, and so an imbalance of the hormones can lead to heightened negative feelings and poor motivation. It takes clinical intervention in order to resolve PTSD, and not just personal effort to let go of a memory.
2. Traumatic is Relative - To this day, specialists and doctors do not have a quantifiable measure for the trauma that those with PTSD go through. This is because different people consider different events traumatizing. For example, many of those who survived the Second World War continue to have PTSD up to this day, especially those who were in the front lines. But there are some of those men who were able to cope easily with what others labelled traumatizing. There are varying levels of trauma for different individuals, and it's important to keep an open mind as to how certain events affect certain people. Check out http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dani-bostick/ptsd-its-not-just-for-veterans_b_8309184.html for more info about PTSD.
3. It Can Get Better - While PTSD symptoms are known to last quite a while, it does get better. For the first few months following the traumatic incident, people are likely to feel uninspired, unmotivated, and even helpless when reminded of their traumatic experience. but as the days go on, people learn to adapt to the thoughts. sadly, there are some who simply avoid the memories of the traumatic event, which means that they could still suffer the symptoms if reminded. The best way to resolve PTSD would be to confront the issues with a trained specialist guiding the therapy.