We typically hear about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in reference to those who have served in the military. However, members of the military are not the only ones who can experience PTSD. PTSD develops from the experience of any event that causes intense fear, resulting in trauma that stays with us, both physically and mentally. When we experience a traumatic event, our body and mind can become trapped in a chronic ‘fight or flight’ survival mode. This is because our brain is literally altered due to the intensity of the fear felt during the triggering event. Inside our brain, the amygdala becomes overactive while our prefrontal cortex struggles to respond, causing excess adrenaline to rush through our bodies in situations that slightly remind us of the original event. As a result, we may experience a rapid heart rate, rapid breathing, sweating, and severe shaking in situations that would not normally cause us fear. We may also develop tension headaches, back pain, joint pain, tense muscles, nausea, dizziness, and startle easily. Situations that can create this internal reaction could be exposure to combat or life-threatening military experiences, as well as natural disasters, the sudden death of a loved one, prolonged child abuse, sexual assault, physical violence, and serious accidents, among others. Anyone can experience these life-changing events.
Effective therapeutic approaches for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) rely on the use of evidence-based, trauma-focused psychotherapies, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), prolonged exposure (PE), and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Cognitive Processing Therapy are used to help people systematically challenge and modify traumatic and unhelpful beliefs and behaviors. PD provides patients with a safe space to address memories and situational reminders that they would otherwise avoid, in order to reduce the emotional and physical responses they trigger. EMDR is widely used in trauma-related therapy, using bilateral stimulation through side-to-side eye movements to help reprocess the traumatic event. Ultimately, these approaches focus on providing a safe space for people to retrain their brains' response to triggers and stimuli that induce physical and emotional responses related to the original event.
