Definition | Post-traumatic stress | Futura Health

Thepost-traumatic stress disorder, or post-traumatic stress disorder, is a pathology which appears after a traumatic event such as: an attack, a context of death, an assault, a serious injury, a accident, a natural disaster, the death of a loved one, the fight against a serious illness, scenes of war… After the feelings of fear, of horror, at the time of the traumatic event, others symptoms may appear in the following months.

Symptoms of a stress post-traumatic are:

  • the reviviscences: the patient relives in part the event. This can result in pervasive memories, nightmares, flashbacks … A triggering factor can be the cause, such as a photo,

  • avoidance: the patient avoids people, places, objects, which could remind him of the traumatic event,

  • cognitive impairment: memory, concentration,

  • of sleeping troubles,

  • emotional problems: negative emotions (sadness, fear, horror, guilt …), loss of interest in daily activities, difficulty experiencing positive feelings, hypervigilance, irritability …

Management of post-traumatic stress disorder

Many people experience a traumatic event at some point in their lives. Some recover on their own and do not develop post-traumatic stress disorder. But if symptoms persist for more than a month, the patient should be taken care of as there may be serious consequences, such as depression, consumption and dependence on substances.

First line therapy is psychotherapy which can take different forms: therapy cognitive and behavioral, hypnosis … If psychotherapy does not give sufficient results, drug treatment can be considered, based onantidepressants, ofanxiolytics. In general, patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder must be supervised by trusted people and avoid isolation.

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