PTSD or Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is a serious condition with lasting consequences. The modern concept of PTSD was once referred to as battle fatigue, and shell shock. This debilitating condition can develop after a person experiences or witnesses a traumatic event in which serious harm occurred or was threatened. It’s important to note that serious harm does not have to occur to the individual who develops PTSD. The main criterion here is at least witnessing such an event. PTSD can rear its ugly head as much as three months to more than a year after the actual traumatic event. Some examples of traumatic events that can cause PTSD include sexual assault, physical assault, an unexpected death of a loved one, an accident, war, or natural disaster.
Symptoms for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder vary, but most include shock, anger, fear, anxiety, and guilt. While these emotions are common for most people, in the best of circumstances they go away after a while. However, with PTSD the anger, fear, anxiety, shock, or guilt surrounding the memories of a traumatic event do not just go away by themselves. In fact, they get worse. Severity and duration varies from one case to the next, and that also depends heavily on whether or not the person suffering from PTSD seeks and receives necessary help.
There are four main categories of symptoms with PTSD which are reliving, avoiding, increased arousal, and negative cognitions and moods. Reliving includes reliving the traumatic event through memories, flashbacks, hallucinations, nightmares, and reminders of the event like anniversaries. The avoiding category of symptoms may include the person actively avoiding specific people, places, or situations. This could also include avoiding people, and public places in general. The seclusion this causes can lead to feelings of detachment, loss of interest in previously favored hobbies or activities, and near complete isolation from significant others. Increased arousal is defined by excessive emotions, difficulty falling or staying asleep, irritability, anxiety, outbursts of anger, increased blood pressure, increased heartrate, nausea, and diarrhea. Negative cognitions and mood is defined by the emotions and thoughts of blame or guilt surrounding the traumatic event.
There are two main ways, currently, in which doctors can treat PTSD which are medications, and psychotherapy. The use of medications to treat PTSD is common, and there is a wide range of medications used to treat the symptoms of PTSD, though none are specific to PTSD, and none address the root causes of PTSD. These different types of medications include selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRI’s, like Paxil, Celexa, Luvox, Prozac, and Zoloft; antidepressants used to treat and to control feelings of anxiety; tricyclic antidepressants like Elavil; Neuroleptics like Seroquel; mood stabilizers like Depakote; tranquilizers like Ativan; and certain blood pressure medications that are used for particular symptoms like Prazosin for nightmares.
The second form of major treatment for PTSD is psychotherapy. This type of therapy can take many forms like Cognitive behavioral therapy, exposure therapy, psychodynamic therapy, family therapy, group therapy, and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR. Psychotherapy often involves helping the person learn skills to manage symptoms by developing coping mechanisms, working with family members, and helping the sufferer work past fears. Cognitive behavioral therapy involves learning to notice and change thought patterns and negative emotions, feelings, and behaviors. Exposure therapy involves having the person suffering from PTSD relive their traumatic event in a very controlled and safe environment. Psychodynamic therapy helps a person examine their personal values in relation to any emotional conflicts created by the traumatic event. Family therapy seeks to help the families of those suffering from PTSD. Group therapy allows for talk therapy in a group of peers, and EMDR is a complex form of psychotherapy that was originally designed to relieve distress centered on traumatic memories.
The testing of, and possible use for, Marijuana in the treatment of PTSD is exciting, and is showing promise. Two major cannabinoids found in marijuana- tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabinoid (CBD) are known to affect the body’s endocannabinoid system. The endocannabinoid system plays a major role in achieving and managing emotional homeostasis, and in regulating memory consolidation, retrieval and extension. This is because the cannabinoids in Marijuana block continuous memory retrieval of the traumatic event. This effect can help PTSD sufferers manage the core symptoms of PTSD.
Cannabis may also have the marijuanaential to dampen the emotional impact of the original traumatic event, improve sleep patterns in those suffering from insomnia, and perhaps help prevent the development of PTSD’s symptoms. (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder(PTSD)- Medical Marijuana Research Overview, 2015)
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