Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Have you experienced a traumatic event? Are you suffering from lingering fear and anxiety? Do you feel like you no longer have any control over how you think, feel and behave?

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental health challenge that may occur in individuals who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event such as a natural disaster, a terrorist act, an act of war, a serious accident, rape, or any other violent personal assault.

It is believed that post-traumatic stress disorder affects nearly four percent of the U.S. adult population. While it is usually linked with veterans who’ve experienced combat, post-traumatic stress disorder occurs in all people regardless of age, race, nationality or culture. In fact, women are twice as likely to experience PTSD than men.

What are the Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?

People with post-traumatic stress disorder often experience intense thoughts and feelings related to their traumatic experiences. These can last for a long time after the initial event. Many people with post-traumatic stress disorder also relive the event through flashbacks and nightmares.

People with post-traumatic stress disorder often feel intense emotions such as fear, anger, sadness and a detachment from friends, family and community members. They often avoid people and situations that remind them of the traumatic event. Ordinary sounds or incidents such as a door banging or accidental touch in a crowd may cause a strong and uncontrollable reaction.

How Can Treatment Help?

There are a variety of treatments that can be used to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. However, there are three specific techniques that are consistently gaining research-based evidence of their effectiveness in successfully treating post-traumatic stress disorder.

• Cognitive Processing Therapy – This modality focuses on how a person perceives a traumatic event and processes it. A therapist can help their client work through stuck points, which are certain thoughts related to the trauma that prevent the person from recovering.
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a form of talk therapy that focuses on how thoughts, feelings and behaviors are related to one another. The goal of a cognitive behavioral therapy therapist is to help a client with post-traumatic stress disorder return to a place of hope with a greater sense of being in control of their thoughts and behaviors.

If you or a loved one suffer with post-traumatic stress disorder and would like to explore treatment options, please reach out to me. I have personally seen amazing transformation through therapy and want to offer the help you need to enjoy life again.