posttraumatic stress disorder

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Thân thiện
Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A mental health condition triggered by experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event: Posttraumatic stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to a traumatic event involving actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence. It is characterized by a specific set of symptoms that persist for more than a month and cause significant distress or impairment.
Usage and Examples
  • Noun:
    • Many veterans receive treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder.
    • The survivor of the accident was diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder.
    • Effective therapies exist for managing posttraumatic stress disorder.
Advanced Usage and Clinical Context
  • "to develop posttraumatic stress disorder": to begin showing the symptoms of the condition after a traumatic event.
    • It is not uncommon for rescue workers to develop posttraumatic stress disorder.
  • "to be diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder": to receive a formal identification of the condition from a healthcare professional.
    • She was officially diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder six months after the assault.
  • "symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder": the specific experiences that characterize the disorder, such as intrusive memories, avoidance, negative changes in thinking and mood, and heightened reactivity.
    • Hypervigilance is a common symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder.
Variants and Related Words
  • PTSD (n): The common initialism for posttraumatic stress disorder.
    • PTSD is recognized as a significant public health concern.
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (n): An alternative spelling using a hyphen.
  • Trauma (n): The deeply distressing or disturbing experience that can lead to the disorder.
  • Anxiety disorder (n): The broader category of mental conditions to which PTSD belongs.
Synonyms and Related Terms
  • Traumatic stress disorder: A less common but related term.
  • Shell shock (historical, n): An outdated term originally used for combat-related trauma, now considered part of the understanding of PTSD.
  • Combat stress reaction: A term often used for acute symptoms in military contexts, which may develop into PTSD.
Notes on Meaning
  • The term specifically refers to a clinical diagnosis with defined criteria, not just general distress after a difficult event. It involves persistent, intrusive re-experiencing of the trauma, avoidance of trauma-related stimuli, negative alterations in cognition and mood, and marked alterations in arousal and reactivity.
  • It is distinct from acute stress disorder, which describes similar symptoms occurring within the first month after the trauma.
Noun
  1. an anxiety disorder associated with serious traumatic events and characterized by such symptoms as survivor guilt, reliving the trauma in dreams, numbness and lack of involvement with reality, or recurrent thoughts and images

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