PTSD – Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Ten years ago, most research showed PTSD to be an incurable condition (Benedek, Friedman, Zatzick, & Ursano, 2009) but evidence and research proves it is possible for PTSD to be successfully treated many years after the traumatic event occurred. Evidence suggests that around 70% of people who suffer with PTSD in the UK do not receive any professional help at all.

It is never too late to seek help.

PTSD is essentially a memory filing error caused by a traumatic event and can affect anyone who has been exposed to a traumatic event. The defining characteristic of a traumatic event is its capacity to provoke fear, helplessness, or horror in response to the threat of injury or death and therefore can affect anyone. Examples of traumatic events include:

  • bereavement including suicide
  • serious accidents
  • being told you have a life-threatening illness
  • violent personal assault, such as a physical attack, sexual assault, robbery, or mugging
  • military combat
  • natural or man-made disasters
  • terrorist attack
  • traumatic childbirth

Any exposure to a traumatic event can cause PTSD, such as:

  • You experienced the traumatic event
  • You witnessed, in person, the traumatic event
  • You learned someone close to you experienced or was threatened by the traumatic event
  • You are repeatedly exposed to graphic details of traumatic events (for example, if you are a first responder to the scene of traumatic events)

Anyone can be diagnosed with PTSD, and it’s estimated that 1 in 10 people develop PTSD. 1 in 5 firefighters, 1 in 3 teenagers who have survived a horrific car crash, 70% of rape victims, 2 in 3 Prisoners of War, 40% of people who experienced a sudden death of a loved one, and an estimated 10,000 women a year following a traumatic childbirth, develop PTSD. (PTSD UK 2019)

WATCHFUL WAITING

If you have mild symptoms of PTSD, or you have had symptoms for less than four weeks, an approach called watchful waiting may be recommended.

Watchful waiting involves carefully monitoring your symptoms to see whether they improve or get worse. Although frustrating, it is sometimes recommended because 2 in every 3 people who develop problems after a traumatic experience will get better without treatment within a few weeks.

If watchful waiting is recommended, you should have a follow-up appointment within one month.

I am able to advise you, through a face to face assessment session, whether I feel you are suffering from PTSD. Please contact us for an appointment.