Trauma & PTSD Treatment Near Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus, OH
Don’t Let the Past Control Your Future Any Longer — Get Started with a Free Phone Consult Today!
PTSD Therapy in Ohio
KAV Mental Health & Psychiatry is one of Ohio’s top mental health treatment providers, offering telehealth services to patients in the Cincinnati, Dayton, and Columbus areas. After getting a complete understanding about how mental health issues have affected a patients’ life, we create a custom treatment plan that incorporates a combination of clinical and medical services such as individual counseling, group therapy, psychiatric care, and prescription medication.
A common disorder we treat is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It’s a condition that can affect people from all walks of life, and we’ve made it our mission to give them the tools they’ll need to process traumatic events and no longer be held back by them. Read on to learn more about PTSD, how it affects those who suffer from it, and what KAV Mental Health & Psychiatry can do to help.
What Is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)?
For many years, PTSD was only attributed to those who came back from war, and was called “shell shock” or “battle fatigue.” Today, PTSD is better understood as the intense, unmanageable emotional response someone has to any traumatic event. It’s not a sign of weakness, or something that happens in only the most extreme circumstances — PTSD can occur from experiences as common as the loss of a loved one.
The combined stress of experiencing, processing, and reliving a traumatic event can make the memory too much to bear. This can directly and drastically change the way that someone lives their life by:
- Causing avoidance behaviors that make everyday tasks much more difficult
- Pushing them towards unhealthy coping mechanisms for temporary relief
- Making it difficult to stay calm or get restful sleep
What Is the Difference Between Trauma and PTSD?
PTSD, specifically, is when the reaction to a traumatic memory is so extreme that it changes the way you think, behave, and live your life. The DSM-5 criteria state that someone with PTSD will have “recurrent, involuntary, and intrusive distressing memories,” as well as disturbing dreams or flashbacks that cause major distress. People with PTSD begin avoidance behaviors to try to prevent triggering these memories.
Generally, PTSD symptoms have to persist for over a month to qualify for a diagnosis: it’s normal to have a stress reaction to traumatic events, but not if those feelings don’t dissipate — or if they actively get worse — over time.
The signs and symptoms of PTSD are somewhat dependent on the source of the trauma itself, but they’re typically divided by type:
- Intrusive memories: involuntary and random flashbacks to their trauma, and the intense distress that accompanies them. This can include nightmares that lead to difficulty sleeping.
- Avoidance: in order to avoid triggers, someone may disrupt their routines or seek temporary relief so as to not experience painful flashbacks. These are often dangerous, short-lived fixes.
- Negative changes in thoughts and behaviors: they may feel guilt or shame over the traumatic event, and experience a drop in self-esteem or bouts of depression.
- Overreactions, both physical and emotional: those with PTSD may be constantly on edge, more paranoid, or easily startled and stressed.
One of the issues with PTSD is that it can truly develop in anyone. There is also no hard rule on what events might be traumatic for a person: it can be anything from a childhood encounter with a large dog, to the unexpected loss of a loved one. You can even experience PTSD from witnessing something tragic happen to someone else.
There are, however, situations with which PTSD is heavily associated — soldiers in combat situations, survivors of assault or violent crime, and survivors of natural disasters such as hurricanes or other dangerous storms, to name a few. It’s worth noting that women are at higher risk than men for PTSD, and genetics may play a role as well.
But again, we should reiterate that whether you’re a combat veteran or an office worker, your traumas and experiences are every bit as valid and worth treating as anyone else’s.
Signs & Symptoms of PTSD
Generally, PTSD symptoms have to persist for over a month to qualify for a diagnosis: it’s normal to have a stress reaction to traumatic events, but not if those feelings don’t dissipate — or if they actively get worse — over time.
The signs and symptoms of PTSD are somewhat dependent on the source of the trauma itself, but they’re typically divided by type:
- Intrusive memories: involuntary and random flashbacks to their trauma, and the intense distress that accompanies them. This can include nightmares that lead to difficulty sleeping.
- Avoidance: in order to avoid triggers, someone may disrupt their routines or seek temporary relief so as to not experience painful flashbacks. These are often dangerous, short-lived fixes.
- Negative changes in thoughts and behaviors: they may feel guilt or shame over the traumatic event, and experience a drop in self-esteem or bouts of depression.
- Overreactions, both physical and emotional: those with PTSD may be constantly on edge, more paranoid, or easily startled and stressed.
Causes & Risk Factors of PTSD
One of the issues with PTSD is that it can truly develop in anyone. There is also no hard rule on what events might be traumatic for a person: it can be anything from a childhood encounter with a large dog, to the unexpected loss of a loved one. You can even experience PTSD from witnessing something tragic happen to someone else.
There are, however, situations with which PTSD is heavily associated — soldiers in combat situations, survivors of assault or violent crime, and survivors of natural disasters such as hurricanes or other dangerous storms, to name a few. It’s worth noting that women are at higher risk than men for PTSD, and genetics may play a role as well.
But again, we should reiterate that whether you’re a combat veteran or an office worker, your traumas and experiences are every bit as valid and worth treating as anyone else’s.
Long-Term Effects of PTSD
While the effects of PTSD might be immediate, other times trauma can lead to delayed-onset PTSD and a surprisingly late development of symptoms. PTSD inhibits your ability to do anything related to your trauma, and it can feel exhausting trying to get anything accomplished.
When your sleep patterns are interrupted, particularly by a traumatic memory, that affects your health and safety because your body isn’t recovering from the day’s events. When you begin avoidance behaviors, such as taking different routes to places you usually go, that adds stress and inconvenience to your life, and can affect your relationships with others.
People with PTSD are also highly prone to substance abuse as a form of self-medication. Treating the PTSD itself can alleviate the toll that these behaviors take on your mind, body, and spirit.
PTSD Counseling & Treatment with KAV Mental Health & Psychiatry
At KAV Mental Health & Psychiatry, our doctors take the time to learn about each individual’s history with PTSD, and find ways to provide them with the right individualized treatment. It often takes a combination of prescription PTSD medication and counseling to work through things, depending on each person’s unique needs.
Certain PTSD medication can lessen the intensity of symptoms, stabilize mood, and help with sleep patterns. PTSD counseling with a professional gives them the chance to face past traumas in a controlled and relaxed environment, where they’ll learn skills and coping mechanisms to process their trauma safely. There are group PTSD therapy sessions that offer a supportive space where people can learn from others going through similar experiences. And when PTSD co-occurs with substance abuse, we offer dual diagnosis as specialized form of treatment to address both conditions.
Our counseling appointments are conducted online through a safe, secure, and HIPAA-compliant telehealth platform. You’ll be able to make same-day appointments with your Counselor and other mental health professionals six days a week, so that you can get the help you need when you need it the most.