10 common causes of PTSD
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is commonly associated with military veterans returning from combat scenarios. While that group of individuals is highly susceptible, they aren’t the only ones who can develop PTSD.
This debilitating condition that causes intense depression, anger, anxiety, and fear can happen to anyone. It’s estimated that one out of every 11 people will be diagnosed with PTSD in their lifetime, and there are several causes behind it. Here are the 10 most common.
1. Military Combat
The most common cause remains military combat. Seeing people die, taking a life, and the fear of death all combine in high adrenaline situations to create a lasting impact on the psyche. These scenarios also include deafening explosions and military weaponry, like tanks or troop transports, that can later become triggers.
2. Physical Assault
Being assaulted, both physically and sexually, also commonly lead to PTSD symptoms. Victims often live in fear of their attacker and isolate themselves for long periods after the incident occurs. These situations can also destroy a person’s sense of worth, leading to intense depression.
3. Childhood Abuse
Childhood traumas are carried with people well into their adult lives, with even the mildest of cases requiring therapy to heal. The more severe the abuse, the more likely it is that a person will develop symptoms of PTSD.
4. Natural Disasters
Fear of death and the death of others comes into play again with natural disasters. In these tragedies, though, having your home destroyed and your life turned upside down can leave people with lasting emotional and mental trauma.
5. Car Accidents
Accidents involving a motor vehicle, including motorcycles, often instill symptoms of PTSD into their victims. An auto accident attorney in Denver is no stranger to these cases. Victims may be terrified of getting into a car again, experience flashbacks, and suffer from severe anxiety.
6. Sudden Loss of a Loved One
Death is never easy to deal with, but it can be even harder to handle when it’s sudden. Depression and anxiety are common, as is isolation or withdrawal from relationships and social activities. The scars left behind the loss can quickly turn into PTSD symptoms.
7. Seeing Abuse, Severe Injury, or Death
In some cases, you may not have to be the victim in order to develop symptoms. Seeing someone die is a common cause for military veterans and those who have survived terrible car accidents. Witnessing intense abuse or severe injury can also bring these symptoms about.
8. Being Held at Gunpoint
The fear someone has when they are being held at gunpoint is devastating to their emotional and mental wellbeing. Like victims of abuse, they may live in fear of their attacker or experience panic attacks when exposed to something that reminds them of the incident.
9. Terrorist Attacks
Citizens across the United States experienced mild to severe symptoms of PTSD after the terrorist attacks on 9/11. The fear that it may happen to them is real, as is the fear for other’s lives. For survivors, the symptoms are intense and require extensive therapy to treat.
10. Mass Shootings
Whether it’s a synagogue, a concert, or a school, the survivors of these tragedies live with symptoms of PTSD for years to come. Those left untreated see their symptoms develop further, impacting every aspect of their lives.
