Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was added to the third edition of the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders back in 1980, but the disease existed way before that with the start of the Vietnam War. It is defined as a traumatic event that was conceptualized as a catastrophic stressor that was outside the range of usual human experience. The outline of the original PTSD diagnosis had in mind events such as war, torture, rape, atomic bombings, natural disasters, and human-made disasters. They considered traumatic events to be clearly different from the very painful stressors that constitute the normal stressors of life such as divorce, failure, rejection, serious illness, and financial
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To start, studies show that suicide risk is higher in persons with PTSD (“National Center for PTSD”). Some studies link suicide risk in those with PTSD to distressing trauma memories, anger, and poor control of impulses. Dealing with PTSD can lead to intense flashbacks where the person can have a feeling of guilt and “what if” moments to change the outcome of the situation. With having that feeling, it often leads to taking their own life to take the pain away and make up for the mistake they believe they made. Another consequence is using too much alcohol makes it harder to cope with stress and trauma memories. Alcohol use and intoxication can increase some PTSD symptoms. Yet drinking continues the pattern of avoidance found. Avoiding the bad memories and dreams prolongs possible symptoms. People cannot make as much progress in treatment if they avoid their problems. Alcohol-use problems make treatment less effective (“National Center for PTSD”). Many people with PTSD may feel they need to be on guard or "on the lookout" to protect themself from danger and it becomes difficult to have a full night of sleep when there is a need to be always alert. Many symptoms of depression overlap with the symptoms of PTSD. With both depression and PTSD, people have trouble sleeping or keeping their mind focused. Some may not feel pleasure or interest in things they used to enjoy. It often occurs that ones who struggle with this may not want to be with other people as much. Both PTSD and depression involve an increase of irritability. It is possible to have both depression and PTSD at the same time since they are very
To start, studies show that suicide risk is higher in persons with PTSD (“National Center for PTSD”). Some studies link suicide risk in those with PTSD to distressing trauma memories, anger, and poor control of impulses. Dealing with PTSD can lead to intense flashbacks where the person can have a feeling of guilt and “what if” moments to change the outcome of the situation. With having that feeling, it often leads to taking their own life to take the pain away and make up for the mistake they believe they made. Another consequence is using too much alcohol makes it harder to cope with stress and trauma memories. Alcohol use and intoxication can increase some PTSD symptoms. Yet drinking continues the pattern of avoidance found. Avoiding the bad memories and dreams prolongs possible symptoms. People cannot make as much progress in treatment if they avoid their problems. Alcohol-use problems make treatment less effective (“National Center for PTSD”). Many people with PTSD may feel they need to be on guard or "on the lookout" to protect themself from danger and it becomes difficult to have a full night of sleep when there is a need to be always alert. Many symptoms of depression overlap with the symptoms of PTSD. With both depression and PTSD, people have trouble sleeping or keeping their mind focused. Some may not feel pleasure or interest in things they used to enjoy. It often occurs that ones who struggle with this may not want to be with other people as much. Both PTSD and depression involve an increase of irritability. It is possible to have both depression and PTSD at the same time since they are very