PTSD

Question 1

How would you describe PTSD?

Answer 1

It is an emotional response to a catastrophic event which is likely to have been life-threatening or extremely distressing.
It might involve the person reliving their experience

Question 2

Name some symptoms of PTSD

Answer 2

– re-experiencing
– avoidance
– hyperarousal
– Negative alterations in mood and thinking
– emotional numbing
– dissociation
– emotional dysregulation
– interpersonal difficulties or problems in relationships
– negative perception of self

Question 3

Name some Triggers for PTSD

Answer 3

– Serious accidents
– physical and sexual assault
– abuse
– domestic abuse
– work-related exposure to trauma
– trauma related to serious health problems or childbirth experiences
– war
– torture

Question 4

What is epidemiology of PTSD

Answer 4

Approximately 1 to 10% of people will expect PTSD in a lifetime
It is more common in soldiers, disaster victims, rape survivors and assault victims

Question 5

Name some Predisposing factors for a person who might get PTSD

Answer 5

– Personality traits
– previous history of neurotic illness
– genetics (oversensitive amygdala and hippocampus, decreased hippocampal size on MRI slime)
– Predisposing factors may lower the threshold for the development of the syndrome but they are not the cause

Question 6

How would you manage PTSD in adults who have been diagnosed with the condition

Answer 6

– Offer trauma focused CBT
- Offer EMDR ( eye movement desensitisation reprocessing)
– Venlafaxine or an SSRI
– antipsychotics (risperidone) if the patient has hyper arousal symptoms/psychotic symptoms and has not responded to other medication first