A-B-C, Women and PTSD, It’s Easy Like 1-2-3: Medical Trauma, Women and PTSD
What is PTSD?
Post-Traumatic Stress disorder, otherwise known as PTSD, is a mental disorder following a terrible or life-threatening event. Reactions to a traumatic event during or after the time of the event is completely normal. This is the body’s way of protecting itself against a perceived threat. Normally, the person will recover from the event and go back to normal weeks later. However, if a person’s reaction to the event is over one month, then they have PTSD. Almost 8% of the general population have PTSD. While 15-30% of trauma survivors will develop PTSD. Veterans have an even higher chance of developing PTSD.
Risk Factors For PTSD include: pre-existing mental health issues, familial history of mental disorders, experiencing multiple stressors and lack of post-trauma support.
To be diagnosed with PTSD the person must have at least one re-experiencing symptom, one avoidance symptom, one avoidance symptom, two reactive symptoms and two mood symptoms. Examples of each type of symptom include:
Re-experiencing:
Bad Dreams/ Nightmares about the event
Frightening Thoughts
Re-living the trauma, including the symptoms repeatedly- otherwise known as flashbacks
Avoidance:
Keeping away from places, people, objects or events that remind the victim of the trauma
Stopping oneself from having thoughts and/or feelings that are connected to the event
Reactive:
Being easily startled or having the feeling of being “on edge”
Having difficulty sleeping
Angry outburst for no apparent reason
Mood
Negative thoughts about oneself
Placing blame or guilt about the event on someone who does not deserve it- Including oneself
Loss of interest in things previously enjoyed
Forgetting elements of the event
Medical Trauma
Medical trauma is a different type of trauma where the life-threatening event occurs in a medical setting, such as a hospital or doctor’s office, to a person or a loved one. Although this type of trauma is not well known, it can also cause PTSD.
77% of women who have miscarriages or stillbirths develop PTSD.
20-60% of people that are in the ICU develop PTSD.
30% of people diagnosed with HIV develop PTSD.
Length of time in the hospital, previous anxiety or depression, type of procedure, medications, lack of sleep, support system and prognosis can affect likelihood of developing PTSD.
Women and PTSD
Women tend to show symptoms of avoidance and reactivity, while men are more likely to express anger and use illicit substances. (1)
Half of women will experience a traumatic event at some point in their life (2)
Many of the women with PTSD developed it after being victim of sexual assault or child abuse
1 in 3 women are sexually assaulted at one point in their life
1 in 10 women will develop PTSD at some point in their life
Women develop PTSD at 2 or 3 times the rate that men do
PTSD and Childbirth
PTSD after birth is related to preterm delivery, preeclampsia, poor neonatal health, stunted infant growth, and developmental issues. In a South African study, 60% of the women experienced depression after birth, 30% met the criteria to be diagnosed with PTSD and 25% were diagnosed with both disorders. Also, in this study they found that half of the participants had suffered physical and emotional abuse and/or neglect. The researchers also stated that poor coping techniques is a strong risk factor for PTSD, where 38% of the women had this disorder.
PTSD during pregnancy is shown to have a negative effect on the pregnancy, including ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage, low birth weight and can ultimately affect the fetus’s stress response. Women from racial minorities, lower income households and younger mothers have a heightened risk of developing PTSD. A study found that 25% of the women’s PTSD symptoms increase during pregnancy. Also, they found that pregnancy stress/trauma, labor anxiety and lifetime of PTSD affected PTSD in pregnant women.
PTSD and Cancer