Post-traumatic stress disorder—once known as shell shock—is very common among veterans. This disorder, often abbreviated as PTSD, refers to a fear response that remains after a traumatic situation. Fear is a normal response during scary, traumatic, or violent scenarios. It is part of the body’s normal fight-or-flight response to aversive stimuli, and the responses help people detect and avoid danger.
People with PTSD might reexperience the trauma in non-trauma scenarios, which activates their fight-or-flight response. Instead of helping people avoid danger, PTSD can disrupt lives, lead to physical health problems, and destroy relationships. It is a particular problem for Veterans, who are much more likely than civilians to experience the type of trauma that induces PTSD. Caring for yourself or a Veteran in your life starts with learning to recognize the symptoms of PTSD.
Any person can develop PTSD at any age, but combat Veterans, survivors of domestic violence or sexual assault, and survivors of natural disasters or similar events are more likely than others to develop this condition. Some Veterans may fit into a couple of these categories. While PTSD is usually linked to personal experience with a dangerous event, people can also develop it if a loved one experiences a traumatic event. It has a lifetime occurrence rate of about 6 percent of all people, though the numbers are much higher for those in the military. Plus, underlying biological factors are thought to influence whether someone will develop the condition. Knowing the symptoms of PTSD can help Veterans and their loved ones determine whether it is a possible diagnosis.
There are four categories of PTSD symptoms—avoidance, reexperiencing, arousal and reactivity, and cognition and mood symptoms. Veterans must demonstrate a combination of symptoms to get a PTSD diagnosis, though people with symptoms that do not extend to all four categories may have a different diagnosis.
Reexperiencing symptoms involve memories of the event. They can include flashbacks, recurring memories or dreams, distressing thoughts, or physical signs of stress. There can be multiple triggers.
Avoidance symptoms can lead to people changing their routines in an effort to avoid exposure to the same type of trauma. They can include staying away from anything that is a reminder of the event and even avoiding thinking about the event.
Arousal and reactivity symptoms may be triggered by outside stimuli or it might be chronic. They can lead to feelings of anger and stress and interfere with everyday activities like sleeping or concentrating. These symptoms include being quickly started, feeling edgy, having difficulty sleeping or concentrating, being irritable or having angry outbursts, and engaging in risky or destructive behavior.
Cognition and mood symptoms can be difficult for others to diagnose in a Veteran. Problems remembering the traumatic event, exaggerated feelings of blame, negative thoughts and emotions, social isolation, loss of interest in activities, and difficulty feeling positive emotions are all symptoms.
The diagnostic criteria for Veterans are the same as for civilians:
One of the things to look at is the gap between the traumatic event and the person’s symptoms. Generally, PTSD symptoms onset within the first three months of a traumatic event. However, PTSD can emerge after that time. The symptoms need to last at least a month and be severe enough to interfere with daily life to qualify for a diagnosis.
While people with PTSD often self-medicate, the effects of drugs and alcohol are not considered symptoms of PTSD. In fact, the symptoms have to be separate from symptoms related to any substance use or other illness. As a result, it can be challenging to diagnose PTSD when a person has comorbidities.
While PTSD can be debilitating, it is often treatable. Fight4Vets can work to get Veterans approved for disability benefits, which gets them access to greater resources for treatment. It can also help them support their families if the symptoms of PTSD are keeping a Veteran from being able to work. Contact us to learn more and set up a free case evaluation.
