An experience of violence, abandonment, illness, or other life disruption can leave you struggling with symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, anxiety, persistent low mood or energy, or sleeplessness. Indeed, many types of traumatic life events can lead to the development of the mental health condition known as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
It’s important for you to know that you’re not weak for developing PTSD after surviving a trauma. If anything, it takes a lot of strength to manage this mental health condition and seek the treatment that you need to fully recover. However, you may also notice that not everyone is impacted by PTSD in the same way.
In this blog, mental health care provider Dr. Ronald P. Winfield shares information about why some people experience PTSD while others, who may even share the same trauma history, do not. When you have the facts, you can better understand what’s happening to your mental health as you recover from trauma, finding grace for yourself and appreciation for your own unique journey.
Dr. Winfield treats new and existing patients from his practice at Greater Lowell Psychiatric Associates LLC North Chelmsford, Massachusetts.
Let’s start with some baseline numbers: How common is it to develop PTSD after living through a traumatic experience? PTSD develops in a minority of cases of traumatic life events. Studies record about 3-4% of the adult population developing PTSD each year.
The type and intensity of your trauma experience correlates with your risk of later PTSD. We know that some types of trauma, like military service or exposure to interpersonal violence, are more likely to cause PTSD, while surviving a natural disaster is less likely to result in widespread PTSD diagnoses. But, that’s far from the only factor that affects your post-trauma mental health prognosis.
Factors from your life and background also make a difference when it comes to post-trauma mental health disruption. This explains why two people can share the same traumatic experience, but come out of it with different mental health results.
Some of these factors are beyond anyone’s control. You can be genetically predisposed to PTSD, and your brain chemistry can make you more prone to developing this mental health condition, as well.
Other relevant factors relate to your life both before and after the potential PTSD trigger. If you’ve survived early adverse life experiences, your risk of developing PTSD in the future goes up. It also makes a big difference if you’re able to recover from your traumatic experience with the benefit of strong social support, and if you’re able to access mental health treatment soon after your trauma.
That’s why the team at Greater Lowell Psychiatric Associates is dedicated to connecting with trauma survivors of all kinds. When you receive evidence-based mental health treatment after a difficult time in your life, you’re likely to enjoy a higher level of resilience. We provide both counseling and medication management support for people with a PTSD diagnosis, and, if you suspect you might have PTSD, we can help to correctly diagnose you.
For compassionate, effective mental health support for PTSD symptoms, contact Greater Lowell Psychiatric Associates online or over the phone today and schedule an appointment.
