People who experienced or witnessed traumatic events such as war, accidents, (sexual) assault, medical illness and natural disasters often feel fear and distress afterwards. People are considered as diagnosed in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when showing symptoms for more than a month. But only a low percentage of people, about 5.6% of 70% who have experienced traumatic events develop PTSD because most recover naturally after some time. Symptoms (below) often affect individuals social and work life as well as daily tasks.
Symptoms
People affected by PTSD are often exposed to:
Re-experiencing symptoms: repeated, unwanted recollections of traumatic events, triggered by images, sounds, smells and other factors. They appear in forms of nightmares, intrusive memories, flashbacks (where people might feel and act like they are back in the situation) and can cause immense fear and horror.
Avoidance symptoms: avoidance of certain situations, thoughts, memories and activities that remind them of traumatic events, often to avoid re-experiences. Affected ones may also avoid talking about these topics with other people.
Negative changes in thinking and mood: negative emotions and thoughts including guilt, shame, detachment from family and friends, numbness and loss of interest.
Hyperarousal symptoms: heightened sense of danger. People are constantly looking out for any potential risks, even when there are none and are much more cautious. They are also more startled and frightened by triggering factors (loud noises, sudden movements).
Causes
Most of mental health disorders result from a combination of biological, social and psychological factors:
Genetics
Personality
Family history
(Younger) age
Lack of education
Furthermore, the nature of an event, such as experiencing on going or repeated traumatic situations, witnessing harm or suffering a long-term physical injury can also increase the risk factor of developing PTSD.
Treatment and Recovery
The first choice of treatment are usually evidence-based psychological interventions including cognitive behavioral therapy with focus on trauma and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR: focus on traumatic memory and physical movement at the same time). Patients are asked to recall, narrate or imagine the traumatic event (exposure) to help them learn to manage triggers and replace negative emotions with positive ones.
Medication also often helps to regulate and control the symptoms of PTSD. It also helps affected ones to participate in therapy more effectively. Common medications are:
Antidepressants (mood/general symptoms)
Blood pressure medication (sleep issues)
Antipsychotic medication (hallucinations, mood)
Sources
World Health Organization, ‘Post-traumatic stress disorder’, (11.09.2026), World Health Organization
Mayo Clinic, ‘Post-traumatic stress disorder’, (16.08.2024), Mayo Clinic
Donald Egan, M.D. , ‘What is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)?’, (March 2025), American Psychiatric Association