Post-traumatic stress disorder

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Post-traumatic stress disorder

PTSD

Symptoms of PTSD fall into three general categories:

1. Repeated "reliving" of the event, which disturbs day-to-day activity

• Recurrent distressing memories of the event
• Recurrent dreams of the event
• Flashback episodes, where the event seems to be recurring
• Bodily reactions to situations that remind them of the traumatic event

2. Avoidance

• Inability to remember important aspects of the trauma
• Lack of interest in normal activities
• Feelings of detachment
• Sense of having no future
• Emotional "numbing", or feeling as though they don’t care about anything
• Reduced expression of moods
• Staying away from places, people, or objects that remind them of the event

3. Arousal

• Irritability or outbursts of anger
• Sleeping difficulties
• Difficulty concentrating
• Exaggerated response to things that startle them
• Hypervigilance

Other symptoms that may be associated with this disease include a sense of guilt about the event (including "survivor guilt"), and the following symptoms, which are typical of anxiety, stress, and tension:

• Paleness
• Feeling your heart beat in your chest, called palpitations
• Headache
• Fever
• Fainting
• Dizziness
• Agitation , or excitability

There are no tests that can be done to make the diagnosis of PTSD. The diagnosis is made based on a certain set of symptoms that persist after a history of extreme trauma. Your doctor will do psychiatric and physical examinations to rule out other illnesses.

Review Date: 10/17/2005
Reviewed By: Christos Ballas, M.D., Attending Psychiatrist, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.