Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ( Ptsd ) - 2232 Words

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, (PTSD), is a debilitating condition in which the sufferer constantly and persistently relives a trauma they experienced. The average person associates this disorder with returning veterans of war and the trauma they experienced, but the history and causes of PTSD are more varied than that, as are the treatments for it. This paper gives historical context to the diagnosis of PTSD, explains the causes and treatments for PTSD, discusses how it might be prevented, and explores how culture plays a role in the diagnosis, as well as, how the Christian perspective can be used in the course of treatment. I. Introduction Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is something people have come to know of through†¦show more content†¦All of these symptoms have to occur for greater than a month, impair daily function and not be the result of the use of medication. The purpose of this paper is to provide a history of this condition, its causes, currently accepted treatment options and a possible means of prevention. It will also explore how the Christian perspective can be used in treatment of PTSD. II. The History of PTSD The term posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) first emerged in 1980 in the third edition of the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) as published by the American Psychiatric Association. As stated in Antai-Otong in Nursing2006 magazine, PTSD â€Å"is a response to the memory of physical or emotional trauma.† (Anxiety Disorders, p. 48) It is classified as an anxiety disorder along with such things as panic, obsessive-compulsive and social anxiety disorder. It is generally accepted that this diagnosis was the result of the Vietnam War (Marc-Antoine Crocq Louis Crocq, 2000, p.48). This certainly wasn’t the first description of this mental disorder, however. In earlier times, while people didn’t have a name for it, it was described in literature. Such depictions go back to Epic of Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh is troubled after witnessing the death of his friend, Enkidu and is described as wandering from place to place, panicked that he too will die (p. 48). In other times, it