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One out of every three adults experiences some type of traumatic event at one point in their lives. Traumatic events can include things like:
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Trauma is often believed to be the result of the human body’s fight or flight response, which helps people deal with dangerous situations. Still, after experiencing trauma, many people may struggle with emotional and psychological issues as a result.
BECOME MORE EDUCATED ABOUT PTSD
PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder is a disorder causing severe anxiety and emotional problems after experiencing trauma. PTSD can occur even if the traumatic event was not physical, for example seeing someone else get injured. PTSD was once called shellshock and was believed to affect soldiers returning home from World War I exclusively. Today, we know that anyone who experiences a stressful event or traumatic event can develop PTSD.
POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER
Any traumatic event can cause PTSD. There is also no single definition of trauma. A traumatic experience for one person may not be traumatic for a different person in the same situation.
For some, getting in a car accident is their most significant source of trauma. In that individual, the symptoms might manifest in the form of flashbacks that make it difficult to sleep. Driving in circumstances similar to those preceding the accident or driving in the same location can cause panic attacks.
People who witness violence are also very likely to develop PTSD. This may include witnessing a single moment of violence or being a witness to recurring violence, which one might see growing up in an abusive household.
For other individuals, their traumatic events might include war and violence in battle. Depending on the circumstances, this might also involve exposure to violence, a serious illness, or witnessing traumatic events happening to loved ones. This type of trauma might last weeks, months, or even years, making it difficult to successfully process all of the trauma before symptoms of PTSD arise.
People who survive a natural disaster can develop symptoms of PTSD as well. Someone who lived through a hurricane, a major forest fire, or a tornado might deal with severe anxiety whenever the weather changes, stress, panic attacks, insomnia, flashbacks, and more.
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The more exposed you are to traumatic events, the more likely you are to develop post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. Cumulative exposure to traumatic stress can lead to spontaneous remission even if you have already treated symptoms of PTSD or thought you processed the traumatic event properly. What’s more, traumatic events don’t necessarily have to happen to us directly in order for us to develop PTSD. You might develop PTSD:
LEARN THE SYMPTOMS
The most common signs of PTSD include reliving the event over and over. This usually manifests in the form of flashbacks, intrusive thoughts that you can’t control, nightmares, and physical signs of PTSD like nausea.
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You might also have symptoms of PTSD where you avoid activities, people, or places that remind you of the event. Whenever you have things like flashbacks, you might try to distract yourself with work or hobbies, avoiding the pain and, instead, keeping yourself so busy that you become emotionally numb.
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You might regularly struggle to sleep well, eat well, have difficulty concentrating, and feel irritable or anxious all the time. You usually have a higher resting level of adrenaline, so you are easily startled, and you deal with symptoms of PTSD called hypervigilance.
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Prevail Recovery Center is a South Florida treatment center ready to help you overcome your PTSD symptoms, as well as substance abuse that often occurs after experiencing trauma.
DUAL DIAGNOSIS TREATMENT
PTSD has a high correlation to addiction. People who struggle with unresolved trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder usually self-medicate with things like drugs and alcohol. So, addiction and PTSD go hand in hand.
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That same person who survived a natural disaster might be regularly told to “get over” their feelings of fear and anxiety whenever the weather takes a turn for the worst. The person who fled their war-torn country might be told that they should just be grateful because they survived where others didn’t.
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In such situations, friends, family, co-workers, and society at large might tell you that you simply shouldn’t be feeling the way you feel or that you should have a better handle on how you feel. With that pressure, it’s easy to turn to drugs and alcohol to try and reduce the symptoms. It can start out innocently enough, drinking a little bit too much in the evenings when you have flashbacks or insomnia. But as those flashbacks or insomnia continue to worsen, so does your drinking until you are struggling with addiction and PTSD.Â
PREVAIL RECOVERY CENTER
At our South Florida treatment facility, we specialize in detox and outpatient services and the best treatment for PTSD. When you start your inpatient program with us, a neighborhood residential facility, you get to transition smoothly into a supportive and calming environment. We provide nutritional assistance to keep your mind and body healthy throughout your recovery. We specialize in medication management so that you can get PTSD treatment the right way and learn how to manage symptoms without relying on illegal substances.
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During your stay, you might participate in different holistic treatments for PTSD like guided meditations, yoga, or animal-assisted therapy to help retrain your mind to accept temporary discomfort knowing that it is fleeting, and be mindful of the present rather than dwelling in the past or worrying about the future. At our PTSD recovery center, you have the opportunity to participate in sober recreational outings, including NA and AA events, trips to arcades, the movies, bowling, and more.
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As part of your PTSD therapy, we can use trauma-informed therapies and a person-centered approach so that you meet with trusting, supportive staff members who can help you come to terms with whatever happened, learn to communicate your emotions, and rebuild trust.
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Every individual struggles in a different way with PTSD. Trying to self-medicate with drugs and alcohol is all too common. That is why a big part of your best treatment for PTSD should likely include our South Florida dual diagnosis treatment program, which works to treat mental health and addiction disorders simultaneously. As part of that effort, we will work with you during an initial assessment to customize a treatment plan that includes things like positive psychology programs, cognitive behavioral therapy so that you can retrain your mind away from traumatic triggers, using individual psychotherapy, group therapy, art therapy, relapse prevention, family therapy, and more.
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Contact Prevail Recovery Center today to learn more about PTSD treatment and outpatient rehab in South Florida.
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