What is Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)?

PTSD refers to the development of certain symptoms following a traumatic event. Events that trigger PTSD are experiencing, witnessing or being threatened with serious danger to your own or another person's life or physical integrity. The traumatic event that triggers PTSD causes intense feelings of fear, helplessness and horror. People who are diagnosed with PTSD find themselves re-experiencing the event, avoiding stimuli associated with the event, and experiencing symptoms of increased arousal. The disturbance causes significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning. Certainly not everyone who is exposed to a traumatic event develops PTSD. By reaching people early, during times of crisis, we can ease their emotional pain, keep them functioning and lessen the likelihood of chronic and debilitating traumatic stress disorders.