Over the past decade, as I have worked with cops, firfighters, abuse victims and children of addicts, I have learned that there are many causes for PTSD. It has also affirmed my belief that PTSD is real and harmful, not only to those who have it, but also to those around them. It impacts the way we act, react, our motivation and our capacity to feel–well, anything.
Terrifying experiences that shatter people’s sense of predictability and invulnerability can profoundly alter their coping skills, relationships and the way they perceive and interact with the world. The criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are 1) exposure to a traumatic event(s) in which the person witnessed or experienced or were confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others, and 2) the persons response involved intense fear, helplessness or horror DSM IV p. 427-28). Gradual Onset Traumatic Stress Disorder can be caused by repeated exposure to sub-critical incidents such as child abuse, traffic fatalities, rapes and personal assaults.
Nevertheless, not all people exposed...