The difference between ‘normal’ distress and trauma?
A History of Trauma research
Psychological trauma has a long history dating back to Homer the "first teacher", of tragedy. As an etiological factor in mental disorders” ,“trauma....”was first reported by Janet in the 19th century (van der Kolk, 2004) doducmenting that a person stored traumatic memories differently to ordinary memories.
Breuer and Freud (1895) – who were studing “hysteria” laregly agreed. Although the two men had slightly differing views about where and how a patient 's traumatic memories were stored Breuer; misplaced and inaccessible Freud; repressed (Leys, 2000) they both agreed that ‘hysteria’ whilst pathogenic in nature was a result of trauma.
In recent times ‘hysteria’ has been re-branded as PTSD and the American Psychiatric Association (1980) report that “controversy has haunted the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder ever since”. Spiegal in Yehuda (1999) posits that ‘progress in the field is ‘rarely linear” coming
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They are summed up as threefold; evidence of intrusive recollections; avoidance of associated trauma stimuli and symptoms of increased arousal (van der Kolk, 2004). Symptoms can be re-experienced days or months after the event triggered by sounds, sights, smell or unexpectedly without warning. The intrusive recollections may be experienced as flashbacks or nightmares and the person may then start to avoid things that remind them of the event such as going near ‘the scene of an accident’. In hyper-Arousal the person may appear jumpy, irritable or hyper vigilant and this in turn may affect their sleep or concentration. People suffering PTSD often present to the GP with physical symptoms such as, headaches, tiredness, and chest pain and in some cases an increase in drinking or smoking habits is
Freud’s approach trauma is based in the treatment of hysteria. According to Ringel and Brandell, Freud and Breuer, considered an “external event” as responsible of determining hysterical symptoms. The common component between hysteria and trauma is the outcome of fright. Freud and Breuer emphasis the importance of cathartic experience as a way of decreasing or vanishing the effect. The “cathartic method” that was developed by Breuer, assisted to release of inhibited emotions. Freud believed that the libido, necessary to be relished for the symptoms to be improved (p. 43).
PTSD occurs after experiencing traumatic events and prolonged periods of emotional distress. A traumatic event is something that a person experiences that causes them to feel like their lives, or the lives of others, are in immediate danger. If after traumatic events such feelings of fear or complete loss of control do not subside and cause disruptions in a person's everyday life PTSD may occur. Such traumatic events may include: Combat in a war zone, sexual or physical abuse or assault, major accidents, or natural disasters. There are four main symptoms used to identify PTSD: Reliving the traumatic event, which can include nightmares and flashbacks. Avoiding people or situations that could remind one of the event. Negative changes in a persons thoughts or feelings, such as fear, guilt, shame or loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities. Lastly, hyperarousal, feeling jittery, alert and on the look for danger along with trouble sleeping or focusing. (National Center For PTSD). People suffering from Ptsd may also encounter problems with depression and anxiety along with relationship problems, physical symptoms, and drug and alcohol problems.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), originally associated with combat, has always been around in some shape or form but it was not until 1980 that it was named Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and became an accredited diagnosis (Rothschild). The fact is PTSD is one of many names for an old problem; that war has always had a severe psychological impact on people in immediate and lasting ways. PTSD has a history that is as long and significant as the world’s war history - thousands of years. Although, the diagnosis has not been around for that long, different names and symptoms of PTSD always have been. Some physical symptoms include increased blood pressure, excessive heart rate, rapid breathing, muscle tension, nausea, diarrhea, problems with vision, speech, walking disorders, convulsive vomiting, cardiac palpitations, twitching or spasms, weakness and severe muscular cramps. The individual may also suffer from psychological symptoms, such as violent nightmares, flashbacks, melancholy, disturbed sleep or insomnia, loss of appetite, and anxieties when certain things remind them such as the anniversary date of the event (Peterson, 2009).
“The essential psychological effect of trauma is a shattering of innocence” (Margolies). A shattering of innocence means that a person can never look at the world in the same way because they are always afraid of another traumatic event. “In order to be diagnosed with PTSD, a person must have three different types of symptoms: re-experiencing symptoms, avoidance and numbing symptoms, and arousal symptoms” ("Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."). Re-experiencing symptoms include ones that are triggered by past memories of the situation. Avoidance and numbing symptoms occur when the person is trying to avoid everything related to the event such as certain locations or television shows that could have a possible relation to the traumatic event. Arousal symptoms happen when the victim is constantly alert for another traumatic event. One of the most serious effects of PTSD is that the victims “may develop additional disorders such as depression, substance abuse, problems of memory and cognition, and other problems of physical and mental health” ("Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."). Substance abuse, for example, can drastically change the human body mentally and physically. These effects and symptoms usually last longer than 3 months
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, also known as PTSD, is an anxiety disorder that can develop after a traumatic event (Riley). A more in depth definition of the disorder is given by Doctor’s Nancy Piotrowski and Lillian Range, “A maladaptive condition resulting from exposure to events beyond the realm of normal human experience and characterized by persistent difficulties involving emotional numbing, intense fear, helplessness, horror, re-experiencing of trauma, avoidance, and arousal.” People who suffer from this disease have been a part of or seen an upsetting event that haunts them after the event, and sometimes the rest of their lives. There are nicknames for this disorder such as “shell shock”, “combat neurosis”, and “battle fatigue” (Piotrowski and Range). “Battle fatigue” and “combat neurosis” refer to soldiers who have been overseas and seen disturbing scenes that cause them anxiety they will continue to have when they remember their time spent in war. It is common for a lot of soldiers to be diagnosed with PTSD when returning from battle. Throughout the history of wars American soldiers have been involved in, each war had a different nickname for what is now PTSD (Pitman et al. 769). At first, PTSD was recognized and diagnosed as a personality disorder until after the Vietnam Veterans brought more attention to the disorder, and in 1980 it became a recognized anxiety disorder (Piotrowski and Range). There is not one lone cause of PTSD, and symptoms can vary from hallucinations to detachment of friends and family, making a diagnosis more difficult than normal. To treat and in hopes to prevent those who have this disorder, the doctor may suggest different types of therapy and also prescribe medication to help subside the sympt...
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is defined by our book, Abnormal Psychology, as “an extreme response to a severe stressor, including increased anxiety, avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma, and symptoms of increased arousal.” In the diagnosis of PTSD, a person must have experienced an serious trauma; including “actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violation.” In the DSM-5, symptoms for PTSD are grouped in four categories. First being intrusively reexperiencing the traumatic event. The person may have recurring memories of the event and may be intensely upset by reminders of the event. Secondly, avoidance of stimuli associated with the event, either internally or externally. Third, signs of mood and cognitive change after the trauma. This includes blaming the self or others for the event and feeling detached from others. The last category is symptoms of increased arousal and reactivity. The person may experience self-destructive behavior and sleep disturbance. The person must have 1 symptom from the first category, 1 from the second, at least 2 from the third, and at least 2 from the fourth. The symptoms began or worsened after the trauma(s) and continued for at least one
The article under review is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in the DSM-5: Controversy, Change, and Conceptual Considerations by Anushka Pai, Alina M. Suris, and Carol S. North in Behavioral Sciences. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event, like combat, a natural disaster, a car accident, or sexual assault (U.S. Department VA, 2007). PTSD can happen to anyone and many factors can increase the possibility of developing PTSD that are not under the person’s own control. Symptoms of PTSD usually will start soon after the traumatic event but may not appear for months or years later. There are four types of symptoms of PTSD but may show in different
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, also known as PTSD, was recognized as a disorder with specific symptoms and was added to the Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders in 1980. However, prior to this acknowledgement, father of psychology, Sigmund Freud, had already developed a theory on it. Freud’s Seduction theory states: “both forgotten childhood trauma and a variety of adult stresses could cause neurosis”, such as we have seen in Euripides’s Medea; in which Medea acted irrationally after having gone through traumatic events. Whether it was Freud in the 1890s or Euripides in 430 BC the idea that PTSD is present in one’s daily live has always been a suggestion.
PTSD is defined as mental health disorder triggered by a terrifying event (Mayoclinic). This ordeal could be the result of some sort of physical harm or threat to the individual, family members, friends or even strangers. (NIMH) While PTSD is typically associated with someone who has served in the military, it can affect more than just that genre of individuals. It could affect rape victims, victims in a terrorist or natural disaster incident, nurses, doctors, and police and fire personnel and bystanders. PTSD can manifest itself in many forms. The primary signs and symptoms of PTSD include but are not limited to re-experiencing symptoms (flashbacks, bad dreams, frightening thoughts), avoidance of places, situations, or events that may cause those memories to resurface, and hyperarousal symptoms (easily startled, feeling tense or on edge) (NIMH). Other symptoms may include not having positive or loving feelings toward other people, staying away from relationships, may forget about parts of the traumatic event or not be able to talk about them, may think the world is completely dangerous, and no one can be trusted.
“Trauma is used when describing emotionally painful and distressing experiences or situations that can overwhelm a person’s ability to cope” (John A. Rich, Theodore Corbin, & Sandra Bloom, 2008). Trauma could include deaths, violence, verbal and nonverbal words and actions, discrimination, racism etc. Trauma could result in serious long-term effects on a person’s health, mental stability, and physical body. Judith Herman, from Trauma and Recovery, said “Traumatic events are extraordinary, not because they occur rarely, but rather because they overwhelm the ordinary human adaptations to life” (John A. Rich, Theodore Corbin, & Sandra Bloom, 2008). Trauma does not involve the same experiences for everyone; each individual is unique in that they, and only they, can decide what is traumatic for them.
PTSD, also known as post-traumatic stress disorder, is an anxiety disorder. It affects people that have experienced, witnessed, or were confronted with a life threatening event. It can cause flashbacks, depression, nightmares, and change of mood. Other common symptoms of PTSD are difficulty sleeping, anger outbursts, decreased interest in activities, avoidance of people and places that can trigger a memory, and inability to recall part of the trauma. Symptoms can occur right after the incident but also much later in life. Other common occurrences with PTSD are depression, suicide, and alcohol or drug abuse (FAQs about PTSD).
With people who are suffering from PTSD their brain is still in overdrive long after the trauma has happened. They may experience things like flashbacks, nightmares, hallucinations, panic attacks, and deep depression. They tend to avoid things that remind them of their trauma and are constantly on high alert waiting for the next possible traumatic event to take place; in events such...
The second category symptom for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is the avoidance symptoms. This is where the person who has experienced the trauma stays away from places that may trigger his or her memory to the event that caused the trauma. The person also may seem emotionless. He or she may not want to experience that feeling again so he or she become emotionally numb to everything going on around them. The person may also feel a great amount of guilt, depression or worry. He or she may also lose interest in activities that he or she found to be fun before the traumatic event. He or she may have trouble remembering the event. Things that remind he or she of the event may cause avoidance symptoms. This can cause he or she to can change his or her everyday routine to avoid something that triggers rememberance of the event.
Once known as hysteria, in Freud’s time, is now hysterical personality disorder or histrionic personality disorder. Histrionic personality is what is left of Freud’s popular diagnosis of hysteria. Today it is a personality disorder classified in cluster B of the personality disorders. Personality disorders, in general, are characterized as enduring patterns of inner experiences and behavior that deviates from the expectations of the individual’s culture in two or more areas which include cognition, affectivity, interpersonal functioning, and impulse control. The enduring pattern is inflexible and pervasive across a broad range of personal and social situations and the patterns lead to clinically significant impairment or distress (American Psychological Association, 2013). Cluster B personality disorders are the dramatic, emotional, and erratic personality disorders (American Psychological Association, 2013). These personality disorders are the ones that are most damaging to social and person...
Further biological research on the effect of psychological trauma on the neurochemistry of memory may help clinicians distinguish between true repressed memories and false memories in clients who report abuse. However, to date there is no method to determine the accuracy of these memories. Therefore clinicians and the courts must rely on corroborative evidence, and behavioral and physiologic clues to distinguish veracity.