Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

What is PTSD?

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a disorder characterised by failure to recover after experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event. It often develops from an acute stress anxiety disorder. People with PTSD can experience it for up to several months or years. Post-traumatic stress disorder is a negative psychological or social reaction to the experience of a traumatic event.

What are the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder?

People with PTSD may report 2 or more of the following symptoms:

• Recurrent anger

• Avoidance of certain environments that triggers flashbacks

• Nightmares

• Intense fear

• Disrupted sleep patterns

• Emotional detachment

• Self-destructive behaviors

• Loss of interests in enjoyable activities

• Doubt or mistrust

What causes post-traumatic stress disorder?

The causes of PTSD are mostly limited to psychological or social factors

Psychological factors such as our personal experiences or misinterpretation of events around us can cause PTSD.

Social factors such as the type of environments that we live in can remind us of a traumatic experience, and this can possibly cause PTSD.

Treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder

The treatment can be broadly grouped as follows:

Psychotherapy (e.g., exposure therapy, relaxation techniques, acceptance and commitment therapy, etc.)

Lifestyle modification (e.g., exercise, quality sleep, stress reduction, etc.)