Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Case Study

Generally speaking, most people associate Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) with military personnel and war veterans. However, more and more frequently, traumatic stress syndromes are associated with extraordinary traumas such as travel accidents (plane, car, train, etc.), workplace accidents, violent crimes, and witnessing violence or horrifying incidents. My mom is not a veteran and is diagnosed with PTSD based on early violence in her life and I’ve seen, first hand, how this trauma has affected her and the choices she makes as a result. This subject is near and dear to my heart. People who are diagnosed with PTSD develop a particular set of symptoms following an extraordinary psychological traumatic event. As a result of this unusual and unexpected trauma, PTSD patients are always on guard and easily frightened or triggered. Anger and irritation are difficult for PTSD patients to control because they usually view the world as hostile and, as a result, these patients often isolate themselves. The PTSD patient often feels guilt, remorse and self-loathing as a result of the trauma that was of no fault of their own. Many PTSD patients have adopted psychological numbing and avoidance as a coping mechanism. This psychological numbing unfortunately means PTSD patients often no …show more content…
These doctors hypothesized that patients with PTSD would also show poor health behaviors such as an increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). This study focuses on the relationship between PTSD and health behaviors that contribute to an increased risk for cardiovascular disease such as decreased physical activity, lack of adherence to prescribed medication for associated conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure and addiction to cigarettes and illegal