Trauma Disorders - Chapter 7 (189-198) Flashcards
What types of disorders are contained in the trauma and stressor disorder section of the DSM-5?
Attachment disorders from childhood, adjustment disorders, PTSD and acute stress disorder.
Define PTSD.
An enduring, distressing emotional disorder that follows exposure to severe helplessness or fear-inducing threat. They experience trauma, and avoid potential stimuli, increase arousal and numbing to responsiveness.
What are possible setings that are acceptable for PTSD?
A witnessed/threatetened death, seriuos injurt, sexual violation. A traumatic event occurring to a close family member such as terroist attack.
What is a flashback?
This is when someones memories occur very suddenly and the survivor re-experiences the event
DSM criteria for PTSD.
A. exposure to actual/threatened death, injury or sexual violation
B. presence of one or more symptoms such as distressing memories, dreams, reactions, prolonged psychological distress
C. persistent avoidance
D. negative alterations in cognition and mood associated with traumatic event
E. alteration in arousal and reactivity
F. all disturbances last more than 1 month
Define acute stress disorder.
Severe reactions immediately after a terrifying event, such as amnesia, emotional numbing and derealization. May later develop PTSD.
- has the same criteria A as PTSD
- time frame is to start between 3 days to 1 month
- issues with sleep and nightmaress
What is the cause of PTSD?
The main cause is when someone experiences a traumatic event that then develops into a disorder. Characteristics that run in your family can make you more prone to developing as well as genetic influence. Anxiety sensitivity is a psychological vulnerability factor. Deficits in the hippocampus can affect our memories and the emotions associated.
What are treatment options for PTSD?
- For most cases, individuals will be faced with their original trauma to develop effective coping procedures overcoming the disorder.
- imaginal exposure can be used to work through the emotions systemically.
- If possible, prolonged exposure therapy will work when you are able toa actually exposure the patient to their trauma.
- Constructivist narrative approach is when the therapist works with the patient to construct their own story of the event
- eye-movement desenitization and reprocessing works by getting the patient to tell their story while following the therapists finger
- SSRI’s
Define adjustment disorder.
Anxious or depressive reactions to life stress are milder than acute stress or PTSD that occur within 3 months of the onset of the stressor. Stressful event can include a job loss, the end of a relationship, serious illness, etc. Distress is out of proportion to severity and specifier. this must revolve within six months of when the stressor is not there anymore.
Define attachment disorders.
Developing inappropriate behaviour in which a child in unable or unwilling to form a normal attachment with caregiving adults before 5 years of age.
Define reactive attachment disorder.
Where a child with disturbed behavior neither seeks out a caregiver nor responds to offers of help.
What is trauma?
Single or multiple events that were shocking and unexpected. Usually a violation of one’s sense of self and security. It can be very hard to process and difficult to cope with.
What are all the categories of symptoms for the criteria of PTSD>
A. Just expressing the actual event that needs to happen in order for it to be diagnosed as PTSD
B. Intrusive symptoms (distressing memories and dreams, flashbacks, psychological distress from internal/external cues)
C. Avoidance symptoms (an effort to avoid stimuli related to trauma, avoiding thoughts, feelings and memories, avoiding external reminders such as people or places)
D. Negative alterations in cognitions and moods (cannot recall key features, negative beliefs about a self, sense of blame, negative emotional state, less interest in activities, detaching from others)
E. alterations in arousal and reactivity (irritable behaviour, self-destructive, hypervigilant, startle very easily, no concentration, sleep disturbance)
What are the 2 specifiers for PTSD?
- delayed onset
- dissociative symptoms (depersonalization or derealization)
Specifier is diagnosed with PTSD just to help other clinical know their symptoms to potentially make a better course of treatment.
Define depersonalization and derealization.
Depersonalize: feeling detached from and feeling as if one is an outside observer of their own mental process (feels as though the self is in a dream)
Derealization: repeated feeling of unreality of surroundings (world around feels dreamlike)
