PTSD = Anxiety (An Opinion)

Article Tools Print This Page | Comments(0) | Suggest a Story

By Ofc. L. Ruiz, Miami Dade Corrections & Rehabilitaiton Department

Published: 10/25/2010

Corrections Officer work can be very isolating work. It can be boring for a long time and then in a blink it can become terrifying. To make matters even worse shift work is very unnatural and can have terrible effects on the body. It can disrupt your family life, and take a terrible toll on a person's mental well-being. This is extremely stressful and only adds to the emotional load being carried by a person whose job revolves primarily around a very psychologically and emotionally intense job.

Post-traumatic stress disorder [PSTD] is a type of anxiety disorder. It can occur after a traumatic event where you were hurt or were threatened with harm or death. PSTD can occur whether you were hurt physically or not.

When in danger a person's first reaction is "fight-or-flight;" to fight the threat or to run away from it. When a person is experiencing PSTD this natural reaction can be damaged or changed.

There are three categories of symptoms.

The first involves re-experiencing the event. Flashbacks are a common association with PSTD. However, reliving the event can also happen in the form of powerful, recurrent memories of the event, or recurring nightmares in which they re-live trauma. Experiencing physical reactions to 'reminders' of the trauma can also disrupt person’s day-to-day lives.

The second category is called Avoidance. A traumatized person may simply go emotionally numb. A person will often detach from their emotions, people, and the trauma that they experienced. The inability to not remember the trauma or certain aspects of the trauma isn't unusual. A person experiencing avoidance can also lose interest in normal activities that they once enjoyed and find it hard to feel emotions. This person will avoid any person or place that reminds them of the trauma. Guilt is a very common emotion to feel while intimacy is much harder to come by.

The third category is called Arousal. In this category a person will have difficulty concentrating; they often feel scatter-brained. Experiencing exaggerated responses to being startled or frightened is not unusual. Hyper-vigilance can be experienced as mild as double-checking locks, to staying up all night with a loaded weapon waiting for something to happen. Irritability, outbursts of anger and even violence are also experienced. Arousal also creates a great deal of trouble when trying to get to sleep. This is probably the worst symptom of all because the inability to sleep creates even more stress and anxiety in a person.

Typical of anxiety, stress, and tension are the following symptoms:

Agitation, or excitability
Dizziness
Fainting
Feeling your heart beat in your chest (palpitations)
Fever
Headache
Paleness

Treatment

For various reasons most 'healthcare professionals' choose to take the easiest way out of having to actually heal anyone. They've become glorified drug dealers. At no time can this be seen more clearly than when someone is experiencing a mental health related issue.

Antidepressants: Antidepressants are prescribed at a frightening rate in our country. Antidepressants affect neurochemical levels in the brain with the intention of altering your mood for the better. Most studies have shown that antidepressants have little if any actual effect, but they are big business and continue to be prescribed. Also, these medications usually come with a wide range of negative side effects.

Tranquilizers are also a common PTSD prescribed medication. These drugs are highly addictive and can interfere with other drugs that you may be taking.

If you feel that you need something to calm your immediate anxiety and fear levels talk to a qualified medical professional about a natural alternative. Naturopathic Doctors, Osteopaths, and many doctors schooled in Acupuncture can help. There are many herbs that can be taken as a tea, tincture, or pill. One word of caution, like any medication herbs can interfere with other medications.

Alternative therapies for PTSD may help you to manage symptoms that come up, but have not yet been proven to work by the medical establishment.

Massage. People will often store emotional and psychological trauma in their physical bodies. Because of this, being touched can become difficult. The loss of that needed trust can sometimes be gently coaxed back with something as simple as human touch. Gentle massage can help relax the body and lower anxiety levels. It helps with circulation and to promote better sleep patterns.
Acupuncture: This ancient medical treatment involving the insertion of needles into specific points in the body. It is painless and helps to relax the mind and muscles. It is thought that it works best on PSTD when combined with psychotherapy. Acupuncture is also wonderful for stress management.
Acupressure such as EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) is an easy process to learn and can be done anywhere. The idea is that energy out of balance becomes an emotional issue. By stimulating meridian points by tapping on them with the fingertips, a person can balance that energy again thereby resolving emotional issues. And since emotional issues are the cause of much physical pain, a person can also find physical relief in the process.
Yoga is excellent for stress relief and anxiety. It is a very grounding exercise that can bring awareness back into the body, while making a person feel calmer in their thoughts. This kind of practice can be useful for PSTD sufferers especially when dealing with flashback, which pull you out of awareness. Anything that can help you stay in your body and in the present is invaluable.

Corrections.com author, Ofc. L. Ruiz is a Corrections Officer working at the Metro West Detention Center, Miami Dade Corrections & Rehabilitaiton Department in Miami, Florida. She had been heavy her entire life which was always normal for her... Until her weight went out of control. At 25 she was a size 28. Her health declined and she felt powerless. She started Weight Watcher’s at work; Then, her research rat instinct kicked off and she began a quest to learn. She learned about food, nutrition, and health related issues. In the course of research, she kept reading about the Raw Food Movement. It was interesting enough that she tried it out. The weight simply fell off and her health improved dramatically. When her weight was finally under control she found that she suddenly had options and became a Corrections Officer.

“If people let government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny.” – Thomas Jefferson (U.S. President)

Other articles by Ruiz:

Comments:

No comments have been posted for this article.

Login to let us know what you think

MARKETPLACE search vendors | advanced search