Stress Disorder Post-traumatic

The disturbance of post-traumatic stress is characterized by the occurrence of symptoms of distress and disturbance after an event deeply frightening to the individual. Typically, those who suffer from this disorder was himself a victim of this traumatic event or witnessed it personally and very closely, but the disorder can also be due to the fact that a loved one this individual was the victim of an act of violence. The (s) event (s) that cause (s) the disturbance must have had serious and painful physical consequences for the victim, or have meant a serious threat to life or physical integrity.
Exposure to violence through the media (whether through articles, news or other situations) is not usually considered a traumatic incident for diagnostic purposes, unless this is part of the working life of the person who develops symptoms (as is the case, for example, police or response teams for emergency or catastrophe).
Some examples of trauma capable of triggering a disturbance of posttraumatic stress include:
• Traffic accidents serious air disasters or shipwrecks
• serious industrial accidents
• Natural disasters (tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions)
• Robberies, assaults and shootings
• Military operations / combat (the disturbance of posttraumatic stress disorder was first diagnosed in soldiers and was known as "shock post-bombing" or "war neurosis")
• Rape, incest and child abuse
• Abduction and kidnapping
• Situations of torture
• Imprisonment in concentration camps
• Refugee status
Nevertheless, exposure to situations with this extreme level of stress does not imply that the victim will automatically develop this disorder. In fact, most people which are exposed to trauma terrible fail to develop the disease. The severity of the trauma is not directly proportional to the severity of symptoms. The answers to each of the individuals exposed to situations of great violence varies greatly, and may even result in the emergence of disturbances or mental illness of another order.
Disruption of acute post-traumatic stress is the name given to disease when symptoms become apparent within one to three months after the event (s) of event (s) traumatic (s). The term disorder PTSD with delayed onset applies when symptoms show six or more months after the trauma.
The reasons why some people seem more inclined to come to develop stress disorder post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are not clear. Some people may have a greater predisposition to develop the disease due to genetic factors (hereditary), which make it react more intensely to stress or violence. Another way of putting it is that certain people seem to be born with a greater capacity to respond to trauma, endowing it with greater psychological resistance. Thus, the personality or temperament of each individual can affect the type of consequences that result from trauma. The experience of life afforded by previous trauma (especially in childhood) and the type of social support available to (the fact of whether or not friends and family who care about you and wish you well) can also play a role in whether a people can come or not to develop symptoms of PTSD.
As will be understood, people with impaired posttraumatic stress have a higher probability of suffering from a personality disorder. They are also more likely to suffer from depression or substance abuse.
Although PTSD can occur at any age, occurring most frequently in the range of young adults than in any other group. This may be due to the fact that young adults are most frequently exposed to the kind of trauma capable of triggering the disease. The risk of developing PTSD also appears to be above average in the case of poor, unmarried or socially isolated, perhaps because possession of less support and fewer resources to deal with the trauma they have suffered.

Treatment
The treatment of this disorder, which usually consists of a combination of medication and psychotherapy can take a long time, which explains the high dropout rate of patients. Some researchers found that three in four people suffering from PTSD treatment drop out. However, the treatment can provide good results since they are followed rigorously.
Medication
People respond to extreme stress in many different ways. The doctor may recommend medications to the patient to relieve the symptoms more pronounced. In controlled studies, antidepressants have proved useful, although there is no clear evidence about which is the most beneficial and effective for this purpose. Several kinds of drugs are commonly prescribed to treat the disorder of post-traumatic stress, but treatment can vary greatly from case to case:
• Anti-depressants - selective inhibitors of serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs or, in English, SSRIs), tricyclic antidepressants and several new-generation antidepressants are used frequently in the treatment of chronic problems of anxiety, depression and irritability. SSRIs include sertraline, paroxetine, fluvoxamine, fluoxetine, paroxetine and escitalopram. In the case of an SSRI is unsuccessful, or if the patient can not tolerate their side effects, the physician may suggest one of the newer antidepressants market, such as venlafaxine, or an older tricyclic antidepressants such as imipramine or amitriptyline.
• Anxiolytic - Benzodiazepines are a group of drugs effective in the treatment of anxiety and, in particular, symptoms of PTSD. This group included drug diazepam, alprazolam, clonazepam and lorazepam. These drugs allow rapid relief of anxiety symptoms, but there are concerns about the possibility of causing addiction and dependency. Fortunately, a study of long term impact held in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder, traumatic, these did not develop disorders associated with the use of benzodiazepines. Alternatively, doctors may prescribe anxiolytic buspirone, which takes more time than benzodiazepines to take effect but can be, in certain patients, administration safer long term.
• Mood stabilizers - These drugs are used to treat mood swings alone or in combination with antidepressants or anxiolytics. As examples highlight the valproic acid and lithium.
• Adrenergic Inhibitors - these are divided into two groups, alpha-adrenergic agonists (eg clonidine and prazosin) and beta-blockers (such as propranolol and metoprolol). This medication alters the processes of nerve transmission that highlight physical anxiety symptoms such as tremors or rapid heart beat. Although in theory this medication can block the symptoms of PTSD, studies to date have not demonstrated their effectiveness in preventing and treating the disorder.
Psychotherapy
The primary aim of psychotherapy is to help the person cope with difficult and painful memories and manage your emotional and physical reactions to stress. A variety of techniques may prove useful. Regardless of the technique that can be used, learn as much about the human response to trauma is something valuable. Psychotherapy and learning about the disorder can help family members understand the disease and deal with its effects best.
The fact that you have gone through a terrifying experience can dramatically change the way a person sees the world. Coping with stress resulting from a traumatic event can be even more difficult and complicated if one come as a victim and build their self-image based on his experience as a victim of violence. If psychotherapy helps reinforce this vision can become counterproductive. Through psychotherapy, the patient may recognize that tragedy, violence and evil are part of the set of human experiences, discovering that the thirst for revenge or the desire for compensation are normal, and also learn that, after all, much of its life remains under their control. The goal of this therapy is to help the person make the most of life despite the suffering caused by violent and traumatizing experience.
There are two techniques that can serve the interests of the patient with disturbance of post-traumatic stress, is quite common in therapeutic practice combining elements of both:
• Psychodynamic psychotherapy, which focuses on how the trauma limits their ability to manage emotions or calm down in situations of pressure and stress. Psychotherapy takes into account the unique experience of each individual. People often feel overwhelmed by the detailed recall of traumatic events. As such, it is not a good idea to devote too much attention to the trauma itself, especially in the initial phase of psychotherapy. In later stages, when the patient feel more secure and comfortable, it will be possible to confront ideas and situations that somehow hinder the reconstruction of the concept that the individual has of himself. In short, the reconstruction of traumatic events should not be an end in itself.
• Cognitive behavioral therapy helps the patient to change the pattern of negativity that marks the thought of the victims in post-traumatic situation. Among these there are various types, who want to teach the person to recognize the origin of symptoms and modify their physical and psychological reactions to traumatic memories.

Prevention
There are certain injuries that can not be avoided, but benefit from therapy and psychological counseling and support after the traumatic event can provide a great relief to the victims of violence. The patient should not let others force them by describing in detail the trauma because such conversations may expose him again to the traumatic event and cause the relive the mental level. (A technique known as "debriefing recent critical stress" has not proved effective in reducing the risk. Indeed, research indicates that even this technique may, however, increase the risk of an individual developing posttraumatic stress disorder traumatic. debriefing The term refers to a process that involves very detailed questions about a traumatic experience.)
Not all victims of trauma treatment they want and that is something that should be respected, since most people can recover is the same on their own, with the help of his family and friends. It should, however, be provided treatment to all who wish it and feel the need. In the aftermath of a traumatic event, health professionals must first meet the basic needs of the victim, whether physical or emotional, providing them with a minimum of security and availability.