1. POST TRAUMATIC
STRESS DISORDER
Jasmine Smith

2. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or
PTSD
 Post traumatic stress disorder or PTSD, as defined by
the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Health
disorders Fourth Edition (healmyptsd.com), is the
development of symptoms following exposure to an
extreme stressor involving:
 Direct personal experience of an event that
involves actual or threatened death or serious
injury, or threat to one's physical integrity.
 Witnessing an event that involves death, injury, or a
threat to the physical integrity of another person
 Learning about unexpected or violent death,
serious harm, or threat of death or injury
experienced by a family member or their close
associate.
 The person’s response to the event must involve
intense fear, helplessness, or horror (or in children, the
response must involve disorganized or agitated
behavior).

3. In the Brain
 Studies suggest there are three areas in the brain
that are different in those with PTSD (Nutt, Malizia
pubmed.gov): The hippocampus, amygdala, and the
medial frontal cortex.
 It is suggested that the symptoms of PTSD may be
related to a failure of “higher functioning” brain
regions, the hippocampus and the medial cortex, to
dampen or soften the symptoms of the arousal and
distress that are being experienced and mediated
through the amygdala.

4. In the Brain Cont’d
 Memory is a key component to PTSD
because the traumatic event may be relived
constantly via memory.
 Both the amygdala and the hippocampus
are key in human memory
 It is believed that the amygdala is the “fear
center” of the brain
 Persons with PTSD have an over active
amygdala
 The hippocampus is smaller in those with
PTSD when compared to those without the
disorder (Wang, Xiao, 138-144) This may be
due to the trauma or genetics, the jury is still
out!

5. Symptoms of PTSD
 As in the book Traumatic Brain Injury and PTSD (57, 58), There
are many characteristics of PTSD including, but not limited to:
 Startling easily
 Reliving the traumatic event, chronic or intrusive recalling of
the event
 Nightmares, night terrors, and night sweats
 Feeling numbness, distant or sad
 Aggressiveness and violence
 Addiction
 Depression and/or contemplation of suicide
 Guilt – this can come from feelings like “why did I live and
they didn’t?” or “this was my fault”
 Flashbacks – Which may include triggers like sounds,
smells, feelings, and loud noises
 Avoidance of places or social events that spark memories
and the anniversary of the event.
 Here is a link to do a self test to see if you may have PTSD:
www.healthyplace.com/psychological-test/ptsd-test/

6. How likely are YOU to get PTSD?
 The likelihood of someone getting PTSD
depends on many factors such as:
 How severe the trauma was
 If you were injured
 The intensity of your reaction
 Whether someone close to you was injured
 How much your life was in danger
 How much you felt out of control
 How much help and support you got following the
event (Lawhorne, Philpott; 58, 162)

7. Treatment for PTSD
 There seems to be many different
treatments for PTSD
 Treatment usually comes in the
form of psychotherapy (“talk”
therapy), medication or both
(Lawhorne, Philpott, 113-137).
 There are always new ways to deal
with the disorder and one a newer
treatment is called Neurofeedback
PTSD Brain SPECT scan  Neurofeedback YouTube –
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjPzjV
akyd8

8. Annotated Bibliography
 Rosenthal, M. (2012). What is PTSD?, http://healmyptsd.com/education/what-is-ptsd
 This was made as a source for the persons with PTSD to “conquer the past and create the future”. This site
if for awareness, education, and treatment of the disorder. This particular segment of the website was
created o define what PTSD is.
 *Lawhorne, C, Philpott, D, (2010). Traumatic Brain Injury and PTSD, Maryland: Government
Institutes
 The authors wrote this as a source and recovery guide for traumatic brain injury and PTSD. This particular
work is formatted for the individual in the military or veteran of combat. They define the disease, outline the
risk factors, and delve into the cause and care for the diseases.
 *Wang, Z. Z., & Xiao, Z. P. (2010). Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study of Hippocampus
Structural Alterations in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: a Brief Review (translated version). East
Asian Archives Of Psychiatry, 20(3), 138-144.
 This article details the implications of using MRI to study PTSD in the brain by studying the hippocampus.
Measuring, comparing, and hypothesizing what the effects of PTSD are with the hippocampus and the
abnormalities of the hippocampus in those with the disorder.
 Nutt D. J., Malizia A. L. (2004). Structural and functional brain changes in posttraumatic stress
disorder. Pubmed.gov - US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
 The correlation between PTSD and three areas of the brain is examined. The change in function between
the amygdala and the hippocampus is explored along with the changes in one’s behavior.
 *Kolassa, I., & Eibert, T. (2007). Structural and functional neuroplasticity in Relation to Traumatic
Stress. Current Directions in Physiological Science (Wiley Blackwell), 16(6), 321-325.
doi:10.111/j1467-8
 The functional alterations in the traumatized brain are discussed. The article explores evidence of brain
changes with focus on functional changes in the amygdala, hippocampus, and the medial prefrontal cortex.