Stress Disorder
PTSD
Terrorism
More articles
on suicide,
depression.
Suicide is
not a
solution,
Suicide is
an end...
before a
solution
is found.
A Rest Stop From Depression and Thoughts of Suicide
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD
My view of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD is where a witnessed event or series of events is so traumatic (foreign to what we are used to and extremely severe) so that an emotional and possible autonomic response is implicitly embedded into our unconscious mind regardless of our cognitive input.
The horrendous sight of those two airplanes slamming into the World Trade Center Towers on 9/11, was implicitly embedded into our unconscious minds. What is even more traumatic was our view of the towers each collapsing in succession, as this in an instant dashed our hopes of rescuing those remaining in the towers.
Make no mistake, there will be many cases of Acute Stress Disorder (short term) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD (long term and more severe) as a result of this terrorism, it may even reach national epidemic proportions. The incidence and severity of possible Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD will be directly related to several factors including; your proximity to ground zero during the terrorism, your emotional attachment to anyone killed or injured, your personal support systems, the ability of our people to sustain the renewed patriotism felt after the terrorism, possible unjust reprisals against like ethnic groups in our country, the national and your individual economic health, subsequent terrorism in this country or against our allies, and the success or failure of our political and military operations in reprisal of these dastardly acts.
Symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD
Traumatic memories are stored in the emotional unconscious in the implicit form, and are less influenced by cognitive thought or reason and logic. The triggers that will cause a flashback are anything which reminds us of the traumatic event, yet these triggers may be seemingly unrelated events such as a child jumping off a playground gym where the posture of the arms and body in flight trigger the emotional memory of someone jumping off a building.In addition to the emotional flashback many people experience autonomic responses which may include:
Feeling detached or emotionally numb.
Constant Anxiety or Panic.
Irritable and more aggressive.
Easily startled.
Hyperactive or hyperstressed.
Sleep problems and nightmares.
Some may tend to avoid activities which remind them of the event, deny the event or its effect on them, or are unable to recall some aspect of the traumatic event.
Most people will have some of these symptoms for a few weeks, maybe up to two months and that will be the end of it, except possibly on the anniversary of the event. Others may experience flashbacks even years after the event.
Depression and Thoughts of Suicide
The two prime reasons that a person becomes depressed, are a loss of control, over their life situation and of their emotions, and secondly a loss of a positive sense of their future (loss of hope).The fact that our emotional and autonomic responses to trauma are independent of our cognitive input places undue stress on our conscious mind and we begin to feel a loss of control. We do not understand why this is happening to us, and negative ruminations about our inability to control this process causes further loss of control of our emotions. We begin to lose hope that we will ever gain control of our emotional and autonomic responses.
It is the genetic responsibility of the unconscious mind to maintain control of our being in order insure our survival and pro creation as a species. As we begin to lose control of our emotional response the unconscious mind will initiate a protective depressive response so that our lack of emotional control will not destroy us. Yet the protection afforded us by the depressive response is short lived if our conscious mind cannot solve the problem and alleviate the stress. In that case the depression itself becomes debilitating and we are at risk of becoming suicidal in order to escape from the pain of depression and lack of control.
Those people who were already suffering from depression when the New York World Trade Center and Pentagon were attacked by terrorists are especially at risk of becoming further depressed and of triggering suicidal thoughts. The depressed will tend to personalize the terrorist attack to the point of it confirming that they are not in control and there is no hope left in their future.
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD, Page 2
Links to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD,
World Trade Center and Terrorism.
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Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD - David Baldwin
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD - Internet Mental Health
PTSD.com - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
National Center for PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Terrorism Research
- Response to Terrorism