As a registered nurse working in the medical field, it will be highly likely that a patient will come across one day, with post-traumatic stress syndrome that will require the nurses care. Webster dictionary defines post-traumatic stress syndrome, better known for its acronym as PTSD as “a psychological reaction occurring after experiencing a highly stressing event (such as wartime combat, physical violence, or a natural disaster) that is usually characterized by depression, anxiety, flashbacks, recurrent nightmares, and avoidance of reminders of the event” (Merriam Webster, 2017) Throughout the course of this paper we will discuss post- traumatic stress syndrome. We will focus on what it means to be diagnosed with PTSD, how society views
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Yet, it most often is related to soldiers returning from war or sexual assault victims. The person living with the condition will often have what is called a flashback, where they visually or auditorily relive the traumatic event. DSM stands for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders. The most recent DSM is DSM5 and in it, it states PTSD criteria includes “a history of exposure to a traumatic event and symptoms from each of three symptom clusters: intrusive recollections, avoidant/numbing symptoms, and hyper-arousal symptoms. A fifth criterion concerned duration of symptoms; and, a sixth criterion stipulated that PTSD symptoms must cause significant distress or functional impairment.” (US.VA 2014) In order to be diagnosed with PTSD, symptoms must cause significant impairments in daily functioning. People diagnosed with PTSD will reexperience the trauma they were exposed to in different ways. Examples of reexperiencing the trauma are seen in flashbacks, nightmares or even unexpected over the top reactions when the trauma is mentioned. Next, to be considered for the diagnosis of PTSD the person must have three avoidance symptoms. These symptoms include avoidance of thoughts and feelings related to the trauma, numbing, detachment and decreased participation in leisure activities. Finally, the person must experience two arousal symptoms: insomnia, outbursts of anger, irritability, trouble concentrating and
Yet, it most often is related to soldiers returning from war or sexual assault victims. The person living with the condition will often have what is called a flashback, where they visually or auditorily relive the traumatic event. DSM stands for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders. The most recent DSM is DSM5 and in it, it states PTSD criteria includes “a history of exposure to a traumatic event and symptoms from each of three symptom clusters: intrusive recollections, avoidant/numbing symptoms, and hyper-arousal symptoms. A fifth criterion concerned duration of symptoms; and, a sixth criterion stipulated that PTSD symptoms must cause significant distress or functional impairment.” (US.VA 2014) In order to be diagnosed with PTSD, symptoms must cause significant impairments in daily functioning. People diagnosed with PTSD will reexperience the trauma they were exposed to in different ways. Examples of reexperiencing the trauma are seen in flashbacks, nightmares or even unexpected over the top reactions when the trauma is mentioned. Next, to be considered for the diagnosis of PTSD the person must have three avoidance symptoms. These symptoms include avoidance of thoughts and feelings related to the trauma, numbing, detachment and decreased participation in leisure activities. Finally, the person must experience two arousal symptoms: insomnia, outbursts of anger, irritability, trouble concentrating and