What to do if I am experiencing PTSD
We often hear the term post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the context of war and Veterans. However, PTSD can affect any person who has witnessed or experienced traumatic events or any person who has learned about someone close to them who has experienced traumatic events. This means that even if it was your loved one who had the traumatic event and not you, you could develop PTSD from learning about it.
So what are the symptoms of PTSD?
In a nutshell, there are four main categories:
Re-experiencing or reliving the trauma, such as via nightmares, flashbacks, daydreams.
Persistent avoidance of people, places, memories or conversations that remind you of the trauma
Negative thoughts and moods
Feeling more on-edge and reactive, on guard, braced.
If these feel familiar, you might benefit from a formal evaluation. There are four primary questionnaires that are used to do a “litmus” test for PTSD.
However, the screen tests are not conclusive which is why any positive case should be followed up with a structured interview for PTSD.
The good news is that PTSD is treatable.
And there is a tool out there to help you learn more about it and tools to help you manage symptoms: PTSD Coach: https://mobile.va.gov/app/ptsd-coach
The beauty of this app is not flashy or filled with fluff content - it gets straight to the point. Developed by the VA’s National Center for PTSD and DoD’s National Center for Telehealth & Technology, the app is research based, easy to understand and completely free!
What will I find on the PTSD Coach app?
There are four main sections:
Learn
Track symptoms
Manage Symptoms
Get Support
The Learn Section provides you with information on key questions such as how common is PTSD, how long does it last, further details about the symptoms and how PTSD might affect your family.
Under Track Symptoms, you can take an assessment that gives you a score and summary that helps you determine if you are experiencing PTSD symptoms. The app will keep track of your score and you can then take the assessment as often as you like to see whether the symptoms are increasing or decreasing over time.
The section on Get Support gives you national hotlines and paths to finding professional mental health care. While the App is geared towards Veterans, it also provides this type of information that is for the general public.
Last but not least, the Manage Symptoms sections has great tools to help you in the moment or whenever you feel like it. Below, I highlight a few of them.
What can I do if I’m experiencing PTSD symptoms?
Here are some tools you will find on the app. More tools can be found on PTSD Coach.
Use the RID Tool
Relax - Take 30 seconds to relax by breathing in and out slowly. When you breath in think the work “let” and as you breath out, think the word “go”.
Identify - Look back a few minutes or hours and identify what reminder of your trauma you encountered. Remember, triggers can be our own thoughts, memories or something that happened outside of us like seeing a picture, a noise, or comment. Now that you’ve identified the trigger, notice how it is just the reminder and not the actual trauma happening again even though your body and mind is reacting. Like a game of finding difference between two nearly identical photos, look for the differences between the actual trauma and reminder. Remind yourself of those differences again and again.
Decide - Now you can decide how to respond to this trigger instead of responding on “auto-pilot”. Maybe you choose to do a mediation, or go splash cold water on your face or seek support.
Looking at Soothing Pictures
Select pictures from your photo album that are soothing to you. Set a timer for five minutes. Look at the photo(s) and focus your entire attention on the colors, textures, and the features of the image. If you get caught up in the meaning of the person, place or thing in the image - note to yourself “thinking” or “feeling” and refocus on the colors, textures, and features.
Changing Your Perspective
The way we think can affect the way we feel. So concentrating on some helpful thoughts could help ease the intensity of the symptom. Here are some helpful thoughts the app shares:
I will not feel this way forever. I have felt difference before and will feel differently soon.
This feeling will pass.
I have been through many hard things in my life and survived.
My thoughts are just thoughts; they’re not always right. Don’t believe everything you think.
I am strong. I am safe now.
I am human. I can make mistakes. No one is perfect.
It’s not always like this. There are times I have felt pretty amazing, too.
The emotions I feel right now are giving me information about how I feel but they’re not necessarily based on facts.
Slow down. I know there is more than one choice I can make.
You can even write these out to carry in your wallet or write it in your phone for moments when you need a more helpful thought to focus on.
Click here to learn more about therapy for trauma.
