Overview of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Overview of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Description and History

Trauma and stress has been a part of the human condition since we evolved as a species. A “fight-or-flight” response to trauma and stress is a healthy reaction that is meant to protect us from danger. Whether from a saber tooth tiger attack, combat, or a terrorist attack, such events will certainly produce similar psychological effects. However individuals who develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may continue to feel tormented when they are no longer in danger. PTSD is not a new concept and we can see indication of this disorder as far back as The Bible (the Book of Job), the Mahabharata, Shakespeare and Charles Dickens. As the years passed, new names were given to this disorder. For example, names like, ‘Soldiers Heart’, ‘Estar Roto’, ‘Combat Exhaustion’ and ‘Shell Shock’. Perhaps the most infamous was ‘Shell Shock’. Before mental illness was understood, soldiers returning from war who were not able to recover were labeled as useless and weak. It was not until the modern warfare of World War I and the rise of modern psychology when experts realized the existence of a mental illness (Gersons, 1992). In 1915 Charles Myers coined the term “Shell Shocked” to describe solders that were fearful, crying and had persistent memory intrusions. The name ‘shell shock’ was given due to the thought that the explosions of ammunition, bombs, and concussive force were affecting soldiers. It was not until World War II and then the Vietnam War when researchers realized this problem could be an “anxiety disorder” rather than a short-term adjustment (Trimble, 1986). These wars were a huge boost to PTSD research, because you could find a large number of people suff...

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...ir. Perf. Jeff Bridges, Isabella Rossellini and Rosie Perez. Warner Bro., 1993. Videocassette.

Gersons, B. P., and I. V. Carlier. "Post-traumatic Stress Disorder: The History of a Recent Concept." The British Journal of Psychiatry 161.6 (1992): 742-48. Print.

Kuhne, Arthur, Elizabeth Baraga, and John Czekala. "Completeness and Internal Consistency of DSM-III Criteria for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder." Journal of Clinical Psychology 44.5 (1988): 717-22. Print.

Schwartz, Lee S. "A Biopsychosocial Treatment Approach to Post-traumatic Stress Disorder." Journal of Traumatic Stress 3.2 (1990): 221-38. Print.

Trimble, M. "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and the War Veteran Patient." Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry 49.7 (1986): 851. Print.

Turnbull, Gordon J. "The Biology of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder." Psychiatry 5.7 (2006): 221-24. Print.