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Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is the effect of the traumatic events that happens in our lives that is brought about by fear and anxiety coming from our mind and body. The effect of the said event eventually stays for years and a lot of counseling and treatment is required in order to treat the prevailing condition.
According to experts, it is a psychological condition which causes a great amount of anxiety. The amount of anxiety results to person’s immobility that restricts oneself to leave their own home and to interact with others. Persons with post-traumatic stress continues to recall in their minds the traumatic experiences due to external triggering factors such as visions, sounds, tastes and smell.
Research shows that post traumatic disorder in kids is in line with the adults. What the adults experiencing is also experienced by traumatic children. The study conducted signifies that post traumatic stress hinders the functioning of a part of the brain called hippocampus, the one responsible for storing and retrieving memory of every individual. Memory failure, increased anxiety and emotional arousal are some of the many symptoms of traumatic experience and usually become evident within three months from the occurrence of the event.
Study Conducted
According to U.S. department of veteran affairs, 3 percent to 15 percent of girls and one percent to six percent of boys who experience traumatic incidents are diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. This study was done on mice and has generated the same results.
The study was carried out taking 27 people within the age group of 10 to 16. Among the 27 persons, 16 had experienced traumatic events and 11 were normal persons. All of them have undergone various memory test and the brains of all the participants were scanned out.
Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in children and younger persons develops as results of child’s experience to one or more traumatic dealings that has put their lives in danger or professed to have caused serious injury to one or to other persons. In addition, the affected individual must have react or responded with extreme fear, helplessness, shock or terror. Symptoms may include one or more of the following:
- Traumatic flashbacks
- Emotional withdrawal
- Extreme expressive reactions
- Nightmares
- Annoyed outburst
- Lack of attention to previous activity
- Insomnia
- Trouble in concentrating
- Severe hallucinations
Other Facts Concerning PTSD
- Traumatic events can take many type of unlikely situation including physical or sexual assaults.
- It can also results from natural disasters, death of a loved one, neglect or even emotional abuse.
- It has been noted that severe emotional trauma has bad effects on children’s mind development.
- Affected persons are usually preoccupied with risk and weakness.
- Girls are more prone to this condition than boys.
- The more and severe the incident, the more the person will develop PTSD.
- A child is more vulnerable to develop PTSD if the persons involved are her family or persons that are very close to her.
- A solid support of the persons around the victim is very essential in the recovery process.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is considered a grave mental condition that must be treated with proper care and medication. Since they are disturb and plagued by flashbacks, frightening memories that may last for years, immediate medication must be sought to avoid further mental illnesses.
Possible Treatments of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Psychotherapy or Talk therapy
This is done in order to determine the feelings of the patient and other factors that made him or her withdrawn into society. This is a good opportunity to let the patient express all of his or her hurt aches and feelings. This is also one method to make the patient feel being supported and cared for.
- Family Support
Through a family support, the patient will have an assurance that he or she is still cared and loved. This is the best way to help the patient recover and return to its normal life. With a family around the patient, the trauma will be forgotten as time passes by.
- Medication prescribed by physician in connection with therapy.
There are some medications that are given to patients undergoing this condition. These certain medication and designed to help a patient recover from psychological and emotional distress. Proper prescription is needed before giving the medication. Never give a medication without a doctor’s prescription.
Other Major Signs of PTSD
Signs and symptoms of this type of disorder are normally developing after few months of the actual traumatic event and might last for a long time if not addressed immediately. There are cases where signs are very easy to identify since they often associated with anxiety and depression. Below are more profound signs and symptoms which can appear for a number of months after the terrifying event occurring:
Re-experiencing the event
- Regular memories of the event
- Dreams and nightmares of the event
- Feeling of event coming again
- Feeling of fear every time the event is remembered
- Nervousness when reminded of the event
Constant avoidance of any memories of the event
- Avoiding thinking or discussing about the trauma
- Neglecting activities, places and people that can make him reminded of the event
- Erasing memory of any part of the event
- Feeling alone
Continuous feelings of anxiety or physical reactivity
- Staying asleep at night
- Irritability
- Problem on staying focused
- Sensitive on noises and crouches in the surroundings
A lot of people experiencing post-traumatic stress don’t seek professional help since they fail to recognize the connection between the symptoms and trauma that they are experiencing. However, they seem to continue avoiding discussing things that may remind them the event that can make them feel anxious and irritable at the same time.
Treating (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) PTSD
A lot of persons recover from experiencing traumatic events even without seeking professional help. However, if your child continues to show symptoms for over a month, professional help must be sought. Health professionals that can help treat PTSD are psychologist, psychiatrist, social workers, professional counselors, trauma experts and bereavement specialist. In general, therapy is very helpful especially if the trauma is extremely severe or life threatening.
Therapy is indeed beneficial and targets to lessen the trauma caused by the event. Treatments may also include the following:
1. Therapy for behavior – suited to help the victim adopt new feelings and behaviors in annoying environment or negatives ones.
2. Medication – also recommended to help treat serious symptoms especially anxiety and depression. It can also help the child adopt with school and other everyday activities.
3. Group therapy– very beneficial as it encourages kids and other victims that they are not unaided. They make them feel that there are people who are always there to support and will guide them through out the healing process.
References:
www.childrenshospital.org/az/
www.ptsd.va.gov/public/pages/
