Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - Essay Example

107). There are many traumatic experiences that fall outside the ambit of what could be described as the normal human experience. PTSD is usually diagnosed in the survivors of such traumatic events. Such traumas may be of personal nature like rape or family violence. They may also include manmade or natural disasters like wars, acts of terrorism, floods, earthquakes, fires, etc. culminating in large scale death and serious injuries. Risk Factors For a person to be tested for PTSD, there are certain cardinal aspects that need to be identified (Gill, 2007).

The traumatic event experienced by a possible patient must have resulted in a serious injury or must be an experience marked by a strong threat or fear of death (Schiraldi, 2000). Such experiences may also include witnessing events that involve injuries, death or a threat to one’s own integrity or the integrity of some other person (Schiraldi, 2000). A violent death of a close family member or a perceived threat to the life, well being or integrity of a loved one do also come within the ambit of trauma (Schiraldi, 2000).

The second important thing in the identification of PTSD is the concerned person’s response to the identified traumatic event (Gill, 2007). In case of PTSD, the immediate response of the person who had experienced a traumatic event is usually marked by an intense feeling of horror, scare and helplessness (Gill, 2007, p. 108). The experts have classified traumas as Type I Trauma and Type II Trauma (Gill, 2007, p. 109). There are some traumatic events that occur in one go like a car accident.

Such traumas are known as Type I Trauma. It has been noticed that the PTSD patients who had suffered from a Type I Trauma do tend to have vivid memories of the trauma experienced by them and had usually received emotional and psychological support from family members are friends (Gill, 2007, p. 109). There is other category of traumatic experiences that get repeated over a prolonged period of time like domestic violence, child abuse, combat related violence, etc. Such traumas are classified as Type II Traumas.

In case of PTSD patients who have suffered from Type II Trauma, it has been observed that they tend to have poor memories of the trauma experienced by them (Gill, 2007, p. 109). Such patients are usually identified with more severe symptoms in comparison to those who have experienced a Type I Trauma (Gill, 2007, p. 109). Since the formulation of the concept of PTSD, the experts have found that usually the victims of trauma develop the symptoms of PTSD immediately after the traumatic experience (Gill, 2007, p. 109). It is only in a very few cases there exists a time gap between the experiencing of trauma and the developments of identifiable symptoms.

Symptoms There are varied symptoms of PTSD. A person suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder may mention re-experiencing the traumatic events in the form of flashbacks or nightmares (Gill, 2007, p. 108). The people suffering from PTSD many a times tend to avoid circumstances and situations that are closely associated with trauma like scenes of death, violence, injury or disaster (Gill, 2007, p. 108). Victims of PTSD do complain of a sense of general anxiety (Gill, 2007, p. 108). These essential symptoms of PTSD may also be accompanied by associated symptoms like an intense sense of guilt, an attitude of disinterest and detachment, inability to identify or feel emotions and a general loss of interest in the day to day life (Gill, 2007, p. 108). To declare a person to be suffering from PTSD, the symptoms must exist for a period of more than one