Treatment For PTSD Sufferers

Living with a ghost from the past is no joke; people with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD have to battle something like this each day. Having a distressing experience can really make living difficult. Although things have happened in the past it will always seem as though everything is fresh. You are constantly scared of experiencing what you did in the past. Some days it may seem as though what happened in the past never really stopped and it continues to haunt you.

Certain sounds, places and even smells can bring you right back in time causing anxiety and panic. More than this, bad dreams, flashbacks and vivid thoughts of what occurred are likely to be present. This can really affect how you live each day and it can get worse. Eventually someone with PTSD will start to avoid places, get depressed or have trouble recalling what happened. They may also seem to be emotionally detached and have trouble sleeping. It is common for sufferers to be on the edge all the time.

The good news for people with this kind of anxiety disorder is that there is a way to help improve this condition. Treatment for PTSD can now be found in many different forms. The most basic form of treatment that you will find is psychotherapy. This will involve mainly “talk therapy” that makes use of communication as a main method. Patients will be encouraged to talk about what happened during their stressful experience. They may be asked to recall specific details of the event or they may be asked to relay everything that happened. At this point they may also be asked about how they feel or what they think about what happened.

Although it can seem like a very simple treatment talk therapy can be very important because it allows the sufferer to express thoughts and emotions that may be bottled up. These unexpressed feelings may be the source of stress and anxiety for the person. It is a form of debriefing that also allows the person to realize that what happened is already over.

Aside from talk therapy another form of psychotherapy that can be used to help resolve PTSD is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or CBT. This involves a number of different approaches to help the patient. One main focus will be cognitive restructuring. This can help patients make sense out of their bad dreams and thoughts. If the sufferer experiences any fault or embarrassment about what happened this will teach them to view things realistically and accept what has happened. Alongside this stress reduction treatments are also taught. The anxiety that is felt may not easily be removed so patients are taught to deal with them.

They learn how to control their body and its reactions to lessen the symptoms they feel. Lastly, exposure therapy is also another approach included in CBT. This involves allowing the patient to face their fear directly. They may be brought back to the place, made to think about it or even draw or write about it.

Aside from these treatments the usual medication can also be given alongside it to help ease anxiety and depression. Prescription drugs can be given by a physician for a prescribed period until the patient can already deal with the fear on his own. Anti-depressants and anti-anxiety drugs are what are used during this time. Although it can already get rid of symptoms it is important for the sufferer to still learn how to deal with PTSD without relying on drugs.

PTSD is a real and difficult condition. If you have a friend, loved one or even you yourself suffer from this then it is important that you get help as soon as possible. There are other treatments aside from these mentioned that can anyone get over this and get back on their feet so they can start living a normal life.