Posted on December 28, 2016

It’s a fact that 8% of Americans, or 24.4 million people, suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at any given time. It’s estimated that women are two times more likely than men to suffer from this debilitating anxiety disorder. In fact, 1 of every 10 women will develop PTSD during their lifetime. Men suffer as well, but tend to remain silent due to the perceived social stigma.

The truth is, too many people suffer with PTSD on their own without seeking a psychologist or approaching a loved one. If you fear that you or someone you care about suffers PTSD, learn about diagnosing and treating it.

How PTSD is Diagnosed

One of the main obstacles to diagnosing PTSD is a victim's avoidance of the issue, but it is also a common symptom. Such avoidance isolates the victim from any kind of help. Often, a victim's misplaced guilt makes he or she feel like the pain is justifiable. Too often, a victim believes they can manage it themselves. Other times, the traumatic event causing PTSD is too embarrassing for the victim to discuss.

A psychologist in Royal Oak understands that in order to properly diagnose PTSD, the individual needs to have been suffering from its symptoms for over a month. Symptoms might include picturing the traumatic event over and over again in one's mind and feeling the fear or anxiety specific to that event; avoiding particular people or situations that aggravate the person's affliction; blocking out relevant memories; a hyper-vigilance for danger; insomnia; or sheer anger.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

One of the most common forms of therapy assigned to PTSD is cognitive behavioral therapy. This form of therapy helps a person understand and change how they think about their trauma and its aftermath. Dealing with anger, fear, and guilt are cornerstones of cognitive therapy. Further, negative thoughts need to be displaced by less distressing thoughts or feelings.

Exposure Therapy

Exposure therapy is also a common treatment for those who suffer with PTSD. The goal in this type of therapy is for the sufferer of PTSD to eventually feel less fear of the trauma that haunts them. This encourages PTSD victims to change the way they react to the event that caused their anxiety.

If you or someone you know is suffering from PTSD, a psychologist in Royal Oak, MI is waiting to help.

Sources:

If you have PTSD you should know immediately
healmyptsd.com

When to Get a PTSD Diagnosis
ptsdalliance.org

PTSD: National Center for PTSD
ptsd.va.gov