Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Symptoms, Treatment, and Self-Help

War exposes peope to major traumatic experiences and you or your brother, son, mother, daughter may be having trouble getting back to regular life and reconnecting to others - in the way you did before you had horrible experiences. This may be caused by Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome - a frequent reaction to war. When Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is dealt with in a sensitive way with the latest break-throughs of healing methods - you or your loved ones have a chance to heal and be able to resume a normal and happy, well-balanced life.

What is PTSD?

You may be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). When you have PTSD, it can seem like you will never get over what happened or feel normal again. But help is available – and you are not alone. If you are willing to seek treatment, stick with it, and reach out to others for support, particularly those who are knowledgeable and sensitive to the issues of PTSD, you will be able to overcome the symptoms of PTSD and move on with your life.

PTSD is a response by normal people to an abnormal situation.

When trauma has shattered your sense of safety and your trust in humanity, it’s normal to feel disconnected or numb or even a little crazy – and most people do.

The difference between people who go on to develop PTSD and those who don’t is how they cope with the trauma to get over the shock the traumatic events have caused to them. It is not your choice or your fault as to how your emotions react to the horror you saw and experienced. Don't blame yourself for having PTSD.

After a traumatic experience, the mind and the body are in shock. It is important to allow yourself to feel your feelings, and if you were especially shocked it is normal to have strong reactions to horrible situations. The feelings you have when you remember the horror are not fun and not easy to deal with - it is sad to know how terrible people can behave during a war and you may have feelings of guilt for doing what you did during the war yourself. All these feelings are normal. War situations are bad. They may make you feel bad.

As you make sense of what happened - it was a war and people do terrible things in a war situation - and as your mind processes your emotions, you eventually come out of it. Everyone has to go through that after a shocking experience. With post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), you remain in psychological shock longer. There is nothing to be ashamed of and there is nothing wrong with feeling completely overwhelmed by what you saw and experienced. It is natural that it shakes the foundation of your belief in humanity. The key to get better is forgiveness. Forgive the enemy, forgive the other soldiers, forgive yourself. It takes time to accept it actually happened and now it is over for you. It is hard to accept, yet with time you will be able to feel better again.

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