Running head: PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

Psychological Disorders: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Samantha Shiner
Community College of Baltimore County

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Everyday around the world, people are experiencing devastation caused by natural
disasters. You hear about homes, towns, and even whole countries being wiped out because of
these disasters. The damage can be caused by tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and
many more natural occurrences. These natural disasters take a toll on the people who have
experienced and lived through these tragic events. Many people who have experienced a natural
disaster in their area experience long term emotional, physical, and mental distress. Many people
begin to develop different types of disorders because of the toll the disaster takes on them. One
of these disorders is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD is a disorder caused by the experience
of a traumatic event and recent natural disasters many impact the symptoms, severity, and
treatment of PTSD.
There are many symptoms of PTSD that you can see in people. Symptoms of PTSD
commonly develop within hours or days following the traumatic event, but sometimes take
weeks, months, or even years may pass before the symptoms appear (Smith & Segal, 2013).
People who have PTSD re-experience the events in forms of nightmares and flashbacks; have
emotional numbing, alienation; problems in social relations; increased sense of vulnerability; and
experience elevated arousal, anxiety, anger, and guilt (Weiten, 2007). The symptoms associated
with PTSD come in wide ranges from very mild to severe in extreme cases.
People all around the world are being diagnosed with PTSD every time a natural disaster
takes place. PTSD is very widespread in the general population of the United States. The
National Comorbidity Survey, a study conducted between 1990 and 1992, estimated that the
lifetime prevalence of PTSD among adult Americans is 7.8%, with women twice as likely as

men to be diagnosed with PTSD at some point in their lives (Frey, 2013). About 10.4% of
women and 5% of males will experience PTSD throughout their lifetime after experiencing a
traumatic event (Frey, 2013). There are a few high risk populations that are likely to be
diagnosed with PTSD. Some subpopulations in the U.S. have a higher risk of developing PTSD.
An estimated 23% of people living in depressed urban areas or in Native American reservations
experience a lifetime prevalence of PTSD (Frey, 2013). PTSD can develop in anyone, anywhere
around the world.
PTSD was first suggested as a diagnostic category for DSM-III in 1980. This was
controversial because of the central role of outside stressors as causes of PTSD (Frey, 2013).
Psychiatry studies helped to establish PTSD as a legitimate diagnostic entity with a complex set
of causes (Frey, 2013). There are many biological factors that are said to cause PTSD. Many
studies assess the impact of heredity on psychological disorders. Investigators look at
concordance rates in these cases (Weiten, 2007). Concordance rates indicate the percentage of
pairs of relatives that exhibit the same disorder. Results from both twin studies and family studies
show that there is a moderate genetic predisposition to anxiety disorders (Weiten, 20007).
Evidence recently suggests that there is a link between anxiety disorders and neurochemcial
activity in the brain (Weiten, 2007). Therapeutic drugs given to people with anxiety disorders
that are put in place to reduce anxiety appear to alter neurotransmitter activity at synapses that
release GABA, a neurotransmitter (Weiten, 2007). This suggests that disturbances in the neural
circuits using GABA play a role in some types of anxiety disorders (Weiten, 2007). There are
also some cognitive factors that make people vulnerable to anxiety disorders. According to
theorists, some people are more likely to suffer from anxiety disorders because they tend to
misinterpret harmless situations, focus a lot of attention on perceived threats, and selectively

recall information that seems threatening (Weiten, 2007). There are sociocultural causes of PTSD
also. Societies that are highly authoritarian, glorify violence, or sexualize violence have higher
rates of PSTD among citizens (Frey, 2013).
There are many possible treatments associated with PTSD. One type of treatment is
Critical Incident Stress Debriefing. CISD is a treatment that is offered to patients within the first
48 hours following a civilian disaster (Frey, 2013). These treatments are suppose to weaken the
symptoms caused by the traumatic event and forestall the development of the severe cases of
PTSD. This treatment consists of four phases and is a system of interventions designed to help
emergency/ disaster response workers, public safety personnel, and therapists deal with stress
reactions before they develop secondary PTSD (Frey, 2013). Other treatments for patients are
cognitive-behavioral therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy, and discussion groups or peercounseling groups. Medications are sometimes offered during therapy to help treat PTSD. Two
of the strongest factors influencing recovery are subsequent life stress and social support from
others (National Center, 2007).
There are many implications for further studies associated with PTSD. Recently there is
controversy about the treatments and therapies of PTSD. Several controversial methods of
treatment for PTSD have been introduced (Frey, 2013). These include Eye Movement
Desensitization and Reprocessing, Tapas Acupressure Technique, Thought Field Therapy, and
Traumatic Incident Reduction. These treatments are being studied and developed to see if they
actually do treat PTSD.
PTSD can be a very severe disorder that can be cause by many things. If you experience
any type of traumatic event and start to experience the symptoms of PTSD you should seek

treatment and help immediately to stop it from turning into full-blown PTSD. Natural disasters
are natural occurrences that can happen anywhere at any time around the world. It affects a wide
variety of people in many different ways. PTSD is a serious disorder that affects the lives of
citizens today for a lifetime.

References
Smith, M., Segal, J (2013). Post-traumatic stress disorder. [ONLINE] Available at:
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/post_traumatic_stress_disorder_symptoms_treatment
.htm.
Frey, R. (2013). Post-traumatic stress disorder. [ONLINE] Available at:
http://www.minddisorders.com/Ob-Ps/Post-traumatic-stress-disorder.html. [Last
Accessed]
National Center for PTSD (2007). . [ONLINE] Available at:
http://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/pages/effects-natural-disasters.asp. [Last Accessed]
Weiten, W., (2007). Psychology Themes and Variations. 1st ed. United States: Community
College of Baltimore County.