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Public figures and celebrities are more open about their mental health issues. This has proven to be a positive sign because the stigma around mental illness has diminished. However, not all mental health issues are discussed in depth, and one of them is PTSD.
PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder is a clinical condition resulting from exposure to extreme traumatic experiences such as rape, theft, accidents, torture, fighting, and so on. This can develop in any stage of your life, including your childhood.
Trauma can happen to everyone or everyone can witness it to others. As a result of trauma, the brain switches to survival mode and tries to avoid similar experiences. This can make someone extremely anxious and hypervigilant and also constantly search for danger. This could help to avoid any situation, memory or signal that might recall the traumatic experience.
People with PTSD can experience nightmares, flashbacks and repetitive intrusive memories. They can also experience voice, touch, smells and visions. PTSD is also related to anxiety and depression.
Studies show that PTSD is common and affects about 8% of the US population. 30% of people with PTSD are veterans and about 30% to 80% are victims of torture and refugees.
The question is: can brain tests help diagnose PTSD? Experts say that at the current stage of research and technology, psychologists, psychiatrists and neuroscientists only use the brain scanner to research brain changes in mental illness and not to make a diagnosis. Experts need to combine the data of many people with mental health issues to determine how different areas of their brains may differ from one another in terms of volume or function.
Experts diagnose PTSD through many criteria such as intrusive symptoms such as flashbacks, intrusive memories and nightmares. They also check if the patient has a history of exposure to trauma and if he has negative thoughts and feelings. They also observe the patient if they have significant dysfunction or distress and if there is physical hyperactivity.
Once the above criteria are met, the expert makes a diagnosis of PTSD. Experts and researchers use the criteria of coherence in their research. They want to make sure that PTSD can go beyond the threshold of severity and diversity of symptoms.
For those who have been diagnosed with PTSD, their treatment involves medications, mainly antidepressants, and psychotherapy.
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