Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

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Recommended: Mental illness then and now

Mental illnesses have been a stigma in society for great amount of time. Society tends to view individuals who possess these illnesses as someone who is insane. For this reason, many individuals do not seek treatment or deny their condition. If society learned more about certain disorders and the difficulty it is to live with them, perhaps the stigma will go away, or at least be reduced. The individual may then seek treatment with ease, as their mentality will shift from a completely negative perception of themselves to an awareness that demonstrates they are getting better. Having a vast interest in both clinical psychology, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has been a topic of interest of mine. This paper will explain the criteria of diagnosing the disorder, risk factors, treatment options, financial hardships, suicide, and the various resources available to individuals with this disorder. Though we tend to view individuals with a mental illness only in regards to their mental health, there is a wide range of factors that affect the individual’s overall wellness, as the mind and the body are greatly dependent on one another.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder can turn into a very chronic condition that can immensely affect the daily lives of individual. As the name implies, there is a great amount of stress and fear related symptoms that follow a traumatic event. These events can range from something as extreme as being in combat or to something that can happen at any given moment, such as a car accident or assault. In general, we associate this disorder with veterans, as most develop signs of the disorder soon after coming back home, but in reality, PTSD can happen to anyone. The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Stat...

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... order to minimize the symptoms. Since the American Psychological Association classifies PTSD under anxiety disorders, the patient must take antianxiety medications that reduce panic attacks. As we have seen in the criteria for diagnosis listed above, the patient does not only experience anxiety related symptoms, but also negative mood patterns. For this reason, antidepressants are an option to help with the mood unsustainability. These medications

Works Cited

American Psychological Association (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders- 5.
Carrion, V. G. (2001). Attenuation of Frontal Asymmetry in Pediatric. Society of Biological Psychiatry, 50, 943–951.
McPherson-Sexton, S. A. (2006). A Comprehensive View of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: Populations, Etiology, Treatments, and More. Journal of Police Crisis Negotiations, 6(1), 93-124.

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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

The Red Convertible by Louise Erdrich