PTSD Awareness Month

In this informational article by Abigail Woody, she talks about how important it is to bring awareness For PTSD.

PTSD AWAreness month

Abigail Woody

June is the awareness month for PTSD, which stands for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The US Senate designated the whole month of June for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The purpose of the awareness month is to help educate people on the topic.

PTSD is an anxiety disorder that someone will develop if they have seen or been a part of a traumatic situation. According to youth.gov, the US government youth-based program website, PTSD can cause sleep deprivation, fast irritability, anger problems, and constant dreams of the situation. At any age, someone can develop PTSD. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, combat veterans, as well as sexual assault victims, abuse victims, survivors of a disaster or a terror attack are especially at risk. Not everyone with PTSD has gone through a disastrous event, sometimes learning that a relative or a friend experienced some sort of trauma. Teens and older children can show symptoms similar to adults. Teens can demonstrate disruptive, disrespectful, or destructive behaviors towards people they love. They can have thoughts of revenge, as well. Teens and older children can feel guilty about not being able to prevent an injury or a disaster.

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Picture source: Daniel Smart Manufacturing

There are many symptoms that determine if someone might suffer from PTSD. Those symptoms can be flashbacks, repetitive flashbacks or memories of the event, agonizing thoughts, and physical signs of stress. Having PTSD can cause negative changes. Some negative changes that can occur in someone with PTSD, according to the Mayo Clinic, can include negative thoughts about oneself or the world, no hope for the future, bad memory, troubles with keeping close relationships, lack of interest in activities, and the feeling of being numb. According to Performance Care, PTSD does not always last forever. Sometimes, it only takes a couple of months to get through it, even without medication for it. Sometimes, it can take years to get through it. It depends on how much it affected the person. It might not get better without treatment. Not everyone will get PTSD from a tragic event; it depends on how the person's body processes the event.

PTSD can affect anyone and, if you feel like you could have it, talk to your doctor about seeing a psychiatrist. You can call 1-800-273-8255. Press 1 if you think you suffer from PTSD. There are people to call if you need help.

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