{"id":8466,"date":"2023-04-11T17:31:03","date_gmt":"2023-04-11T17:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.talkspace.com\/mental-health\/conditions\/?page_id=8466"},"modified":"2023-10-05T14:37:17","modified_gmt":"2023-10-05T14:37:17","slug":"post-traumatic-stress-disorder","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.talkspace.com\/mental-health\/conditions\/post-traumatic-stress-disorder\/","title":{"rendered":"Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n\r\n\t\r\n\t\r\n\t
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\r\n\t\t\t\t\tMedically reviewed by<\/span>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t
Ashley Ertel<\/h6>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t
Ashley Ertel, LCSW, BCD<\/h6>\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t\t

Reviewed On: June 1, 2021<\/p>\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t<\/div> \r\n\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t\r\n\r\n\t

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How to Treat PTSD<\/h3>\t\t
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Therapy<\/h4>

Talk therapy can also be combined with other therapies to <\/span>help someone with PTSD<\/span><\/a> learn new ways to react to their triggers, manage their anxiety and anger, and help process the shame or guilt resulting from their trauma. This type of therapy can help process traumatic events and change how someone with PTSD reacts to their symptoms.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\tLearn more<\/a>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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Treatment<\/h4>

When you have PTSD, it can feel like you\u2019ll never get your life back to the way it was before, but know that your PTSD symptoms can be treated. <\/span>You may need to try different treatments to find what works best for you. Regardless of what treatment options you chose, it is important to seek treatment from a mental health professional who is experienced with PTSD.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\tLearn more<\/a>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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Medication<\/h4>

Short- and long term psychotherapy and <\/span>PTSD medications<\/span><\/a> can help an individual overcome the symptoms of PTSD. Common medications that are often prescribed for treating post-traumatic stress disorder include SSRI and SNRI medications. Both can be effective, but be sure to talk to your doctor about what’s best for you.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\tLearn more<\/a>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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Natural Remedies<\/h4>

While therapy and medication are often used to treat PTSD, there are various coping methods that can help <\/span>your recovery journey. Many people often look to journaling, meditation, exercise for help when dealing with the symptoms of PTSD. Additionally, it’s best to avoid alcohol and drugs as a temporary way to numb symptoms.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\tLearn more<\/a>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

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Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Below are eight <\/span>PTSD treatment options<\/span><\/a>. Your mental health care provider may introduce any of these or a combination along with <\/span>medication<\/span><\/a>, based on your symptoms and experiences.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Cognitive processing therapy (CPT): <\/b>There are a few PTSD therapy options, and most of them fall under the umbrella of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The idea is to change the thought patterns that are disturbing your life. <\/span>Cognitive processing therapy<\/span><\/a> is a specific type of CBT that focuses on how your traumatic event is perceived and how you tend to cope with the emotional and mental part of your experience. Typically, at first, you talk about the traumatic event with your therapist and how your thoughts related to it have affected your life. Then you write in detail about what happened. This process helps you examine how you think about the trauma you experienced and figure out new ways to live with it. <\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Prolonged exposure therapy (PE):<\/b> This is another form of CBT that relies more heavily on behavioral therapy techniques to help individuals with PTSD gradually approach their trauma related memories, situations and emotions. The main goal of <\/span>exposure therapy for PTSD<\/span><\/a> is to focus on exposures to help you stop avoiding trauma reminders. <\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT): <\/b>This type of therapy is commonly used by people with PTSD. Therapists typically center their treatment around trauma-focused cognitive behavior therapy, which means they focus on the traumatic event(s) that caused the PTSD. CBT focused on identifying, understanding and modifying behavior to help patients feel better.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Stress inoculation training (SIT): <\/b>With this form of CBT, you focus on changing how you deal with the stress from the event that is causing the PTSD. You work with a healthcare professional to learn breathing techniques and other ways to stop negative thoughts from taking over your body and mind. SIT works to reduce anxiety by teaching <\/span>coping skills to deal with PTSD<\/span><\/a>-accompanying stress.<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR): <\/b>EMDR is a relatively new treatment that asks patients to pay attention to either a sound or a back and forth movement while thinking about the trauma memory.<\/span><\/li>\n
  6. Present centered therapy (PCT): <\/b>This is a type of non-trauma focused treatment that centers around current issues rather than directly processing the trauma that is causing the PTSD. It involves increasing adaptive responses to current life stressors and difficulties that are directly or indirectly related to trauma or PTSD symptoms.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  7. SSRI medications <\/b>Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, commonly known as SSRIs, are a type of medication usually prescribed to help with symptoms of depression and anxiety. Examples of common SSRIs that may be used in the treatment of PTSD include Zoloft, Paxil and <\/span>Prozac<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  8. SNRI medications: <\/b>Serotonin-noripinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) medications are less common medications for PTSD, but they can be used as well. Your mental health care provider can help determine which type of medication will work best for you.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Past trauma (even childhood trauma) can still impact one\u2019s life years after it happened. Psychologists and therapists typically use a combination of talk therapy and medication to treat the symptoms of\u00a0<\/span>post-traumatic stress disorder<\/a>\u00a0(PTSD). However, just because that\u2019s the norm doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s right for everyone. Each person’s PTSD recovery journey is different.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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    According to the\u00a0<\/span>National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI)<\/a>, PTSD affects\u00a03.6%\u00a0of the U.S. adult population \u2014 approximately 9\u00a0million individuals.<\/p>\n