Unseen battles: Shedding light on post-traumatic stress disorder

Unseen battles: Shedding light on post-traumatic stress disorder

Imagine that you are enjoying a walk outside on a sidewalk and you notice a large palm tree, a floral scent and the sound of birds chirping. At that moment, you lock eyes with a bear. How do you think you would react? Some people may freeze.

Now imagine that the bear begins to chase you. Your body will likely go into fight-or-flight mode. You may have the urge to run from the bear or face it head on. You may notice changes in your body, such as an increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, shakiness and shallow breathing. This is your body’s way of diverting blood and energy to body parts that are crucial to helping you either run or fight in the moment.

This process is called the stress response, and it can be incredibly helpful in dangerous situations.

That process is crucial for survival. During the stress response, the brain starts to take snapshots of the stressful moment. These snapshots include visual information, sounds, smells, thoughts and other sensory experiences. As the brain wants to keep the person safe, it will start to file these sensory memories and associate them with the scary experience to avoid it in the future.

This process can be useful for learning. For example, if a person gets a ticket after running through a stop sign, the person might be more vigilant when seeing stop signs in the future. However, this process can become problematic when a person begins associating harmless pieces of the snapshot with danger.

If you were chased by a bear, it is understandable that bears might bring about fear after that experience. It is also possible that other objects or experiences, like the sight of a palm tree, a floral scent, or the sound of a bird chirping, could get grouped into that fear as they were present during the stressful event.

This is what people with post-traumatic stress disorder experience. Individuals with PTSD were either exposed to a situation where personal safety was threatened or learned that another person experienced a threatening situation. The situation brings up strong emotions, including fear. The stress response in those with PTSD intensifies, as people can become hypervigilant, jumpy, irritable and easily distracted.

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Because those seemingly harmless triggers can feel dangerous, people with PTSD may start to avoid people, places, things, thoughts and emotions. Their view of the world may become more negative, and they can start to lose interest in their hobbies and pull away from loved ones. They may experience recurring reminders of the trauma, including intrusive thoughts, flashbacks and nightmares.

When a person breaks a bone, the injury is obvious to others. PTSD can act like a psychological injury. However, it can also have hidden physical effects. Research shows people with PTSD also tend to have changes in certain brain structures, hormones and neurotransmitters. Although the brain can physically change due to PTSD, it is not observable by others. This can lead to increased psychological suffering and isolation.

It is possible to recover from PTSD. But it is important to notice symptoms of PTSD to assist in the healing process. As someone who experienced trauma may feel overstimulated from constantly scanning the environment for danger, the person may be quiet in conversations or appear to be withdrawn from others. Some may misinterpret this behavior as being cold or unapproachable.

Individuals with PTSD sometimes carry self-blame, and they may hold in their thoughts and emotions. Because the body stays alert, people with PTSD tend to have difficulties with sleeping and paying attention. This can show up in different settings in the person’s life, like demonstrating performance issues at work or struggling with chores at home due to their compromised attention. Some people attempt to avoid negative emotions that could remind them of the trauma. They also may avoid positive emotions to prevent any surprises or attempt to suppress their emotions through increased alcohol or other substance use.

Over time, the dysregulated stress response can disrupt healthy hormone control. This can compromise the immune system, metabolism and the autonomic nervous system. Research shows that this disruption can impact the microbiome in the gut, leading to gastrointestinal issues. Chronic PTSD is also linked to cardiovascular health problems and morbidity.

Each person is unique in their personalities, bodies and experiences. Therefore, not everyone responds to the same situations identically. Some people may experience situations that are not considered life-threatening, although their brains and bodies may react with an exaggerated stress response to keep them safe. Others may not meet clinical criteria for the diagnosis of PTSD, but they might suffer significant distress from their traumatic experience.

Experiencing trauma is associated with a higher risk for suicide. If someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, dial 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Understanding how trauma can impact a person and noticing how the symptoms show up can be crucial in saving a life or improving the quality of life for that person. There are many ways to treat PTSD. If you or someone you know is experiencing these concerns after trauma, reach out for help. Like a physical injury, healing and recovery are possible. ¦

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