Akhil Nair
Introduction
Hope all of you are in the best of your health physically and mentally, and even if not, I wish you a healthy healing. Today we are trying to address a very common mental health disorder yet very easily disguised within rolls of cinematic stigma, the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or as abbreviated PTSD.
I am assuming that everyone must have heard about this term at least once in their life, maybe not witnessing a direct contact rather heard or seen in movies, series, podcasts or social media at least.
PTSD in layman terms is a psychiatric disorder that happens to those who who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event. The traumatic event can be from anything, like witnessing burning down of house to being victim of sexual misconducts. The DSM 5 categorizes PTSD under ‘Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders’.
Also PTSD is not an adult specific disorder, in fact it has been seen even in children as small as 6 years where the traumatic event could be as subtle as photo of joker with scary noises.
Intensity of PTSD varies individual to individual, also self recovery without any assistance is also seen, a probable reason to that could be our defense mechanism which subconsciously hides the memory of the traumatic event, helping in PTSD recovery. But again, based on other extreme end of PTSD intensity, it can be so fatal that your daily functioning as basic as brushing your teeth can be affected by it.
Let’s breakdown PTSD a bit to understand it better –
1. Impact or “Emergency” Stage
This phase occurs immediately after the traumatic event. At this point, the affected individual is struggling to come to terms with the shock of what happened. He or she will be highly anxious, hypervigilant, and possibly struggling with guilt.
2. Denial Stage
Not everybody experiences denial when dealing with PTSD recovery. Individuals who do will continue to experience strong feelings brought on by memories of the traumatic event, but they will attempt, either consciously or unconsciously, to avoid the difficult emotions.
3. Short-term Recovery Stage
During this phase, immediate solutions to problems are addressed. The individual with PTSD will attempt to adjust to everyday life and return to a sense of normalcy. This stage can go both ways: individuals will either continue to accept help from others or they will become disillusioned and somewhat cynical.
4. Long-term Recovery Stage
As the name implies, the individual will continue to deal with the after-effects of their trauma, such as anxiety and nightmares. However, with treatment, these negative symptoms can be reduced and eventually completely overcome. With constant support from professionals, family, and friends, people with PTSD can expect to return to a calmer, fuller life on the other side.
And last few words for someone who may be facing PTSD themselves, one of the important key to recovery is Active coping. It enables a person to accept the impact of the event they have experienced, and take action to improve their situation. Steps like
- learning about PTSD and understanding that an ongoing response is normal and that recovery takes time
- accepting that healing does not necessarily mean forgetting, but gradually feeling less bothered by the symptoms and having confidence in the ability to cope with the bad memories
