Symptoms For Telepsychiatry For Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

By Young Lindsay


It was then called shell shock, combat exhaustion, nostalgia, railroad spine. History has given it so many names, but all described the same set of behavior when a person has experienced or witnessed a very traumatic event. Now, it is recognized as a medical condition and in some countries, people who have the disorder are considered legally invalid or disabled.

During the 1980s, its scientific term was recognized. Now that we have a name to call the illness, the rise of modern psychology gave way to more information, leading to more interventions including telepsychiatry for post-traumatic stress disorder. In the presence of conflicts worldwide, the increase of crimes and violence, terrorism and stronger natural disasters, more trauma victims are coming forward for help, and the best thing you can do for those at risk is to notice the warning signs before it is too late.

Getting hurt firsthand is the first factor to consider if someone is at risk. Being a witness to a horrible, scary event, and living through a dangerous disaster are also part of the criteria. Having feelings of helplessness, experiencing extreme anxiety and fear, and having minimal social support after the traumatic situation will further increase the risk. Resiliency factors consist of having a coping strategy when faced with danger, being able to effectively react and respond to danger, and having enough social support.

As the psychological well being of a person is innate as much as it is environmental, genes play a crucial role in determining if an individual is at risk. Stathmin is a protein found in our genes that elicits the making of fear memories. Researchers have also found out that a version of the 5 HTTLPR gene control the production of serotonin, the hormone that fuels the fear response.

Certain brain areas are also in charge of dealing with trauma and fear. When we our afraid, our amygdala takes care of what kind of emotion, learning, and memory will be produced. Meanwhile, when it comes to judgment and resolutions, our prefrontal cortex acts as the frontier. Studying genes and the human brain is the key to unlocking the probability of PTSD before it can be developed or triggered.

Diagnosis requires one re experiencing symptom, two hyperarousal and three avoidance symptoms. Re experiencing symptoms such as nightmares, flashbacks, and scary thoughts may affect the person daily, such that it would drastically intervene in the life of the afflicted. Objects, words, and certain situations may trigger these symptoms.

Avoidance symptoms such as being numb emotionally, staying away from objects or places that remind them of the terrible experience, feelings of guilt, anxiety and depression, and such can make a patient modify his daily routine in order to keep himself away from all the reminders. He might also lose interest in the things he used to enjoy before the traumatic event. He may also have trouble in recalling the details of the said event.

Hyperarousal signs consists of feeling agitated, tense, restless, and being easily startled. Patients would sometimes have outbursts and would have trouble sleeping, eventually leading to insomnia. These signs do not need triggers, but are consistent all throughout the routine of the person who has PTSD. Although these are normal responses after a violent, terrible, or dangerous event, acute stress disorder is different from PTSD.

People who have reached all three requirements for diagnosis must undergo therapeutic sessions, most notably cognitive behavioral therapy. Psychiatrists may also prescribe the approved drugs such as sertraline and paroxetine. For utter prevention, critical incident stress debriefing has been imposed immediately after a traumatic event to halt the possibility of PTSD.




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