PTSD Therapy

What can be controlled is how a person addresses his or her PTSD. A comprehensive mental health treatment may be necessary. Call our PTSD therapy in Louisville, Kentucky and learn how we can help.

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mood disorder derived from a traumatic event in someone’s life. These events, which are often violent or sexual assaults, military combat, childhood abuse or natural disasters, can bring about tremendous anxiety and stress for the individual. They often experience terrifying nightmares and flashbacks. It can also cause aggressive behavior, intense and angry outbursts and avoidance of anything related to the traumatic event.

According to the National Center for PTSD, for women, sexual abuse is one of the most common causes of PTSD and about8% of the U.S. population will experience PTSD in their life.

What Is PTSD?

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder like the kind we treat here in our PTSD therapy in Louisville, Kentucky is defined as a trauma-related or stress-related disorder. PTSD “triggers” include exposure to a life-threatening situation, serious injury, sexual assault, or the witnessing of a death or the threat of death.

When a person encounters stress–anything from a hectic morning at work to the threat of physical harm–the body’s sympathetic response is triggered. This response releases cortisol into the system, which enables the person to prepare his or her “fight or flight” response.

When the threat passes, the parasympathetic system takes over and the body returns to its normal functioning.

In cases of PTSD, however, the threat proves so stressful that the body never fully returns to the parasympathetic mode. This leaves the person in a constant “fight or flight” mode.

PTSD like the kind we offer at our PTSD therapy in Louisville is often linked with substance abuse because the trauma experienced is so painful and unsettling those suffering will do anything to numb the pain. Abusing drugs or alcohol is adding fuel to the fire for an individual diagnosed with PTSD, it can cause aggressive behavior, intense and angry outbursts, all of which can be exasperated during drug or alcohol use. This could set the individual up for serious trouble – arrests, physical alterations, self-harm.

PTSD Is Not Just For Military Vets

PTSD has long been associated with military combat. In fact, many mistake PTSD as a disorder that occurs only among veterans. “Shellshock” is a nickname for certain symptoms of PTSD that dates back to World War I.

While military combat is a leading cause of the disorder, it is far from the only cause.

Violent assault, like a mugging or domestic altercation, natural disasters like floods and fires, sexual assault, and childhood abuse are common PTSD triggers. Just about anything that threatens the life or well-being of a person, leaving him or her with lingering feelings of powerlessness can trigger PTSD.

While not everyone who’s ever suffered a traumatic event develops PTSD, nearly 9 percent of the U.S. population has suffered some form of PTSD in their lifetime, according to a 2013 study by the Journal of Traumatic Stress.

The Symptoms of PTSD

PTSD symptoms normally start soon after the traumatic event. Then again, they may not appear until months or even years afterward. They also may come and go over many years. That is why it is important to seek help from professionals like those at our PTSD therapy in Louisville.

There are four main types of PTSD symptoms. Of course, each person experiences symptoms in their own way. The symptoms are:

• Reliving or re-experiencing the event. This is called a flashback. Traumatic memories and nightmares can also occur.
• Avoiding situations that remind you of the event.
• Having more negative beliefs and feelings in general. There may be more guilt and shame or, a disinterest in activities once found enjoyable.
• Feeling jittery, or always alert and on the lookout for danger. This is known as “hyperarousal.”
• Feelings of hopelessness, shame, or despair
• Depression or anxiety
• Drinking or drug problems
• Physical symptoms or chronic pain
• Employment problems
• Relationship problems

If you suffer from one or more of these symptoms contact our PTSD therapy in Louisville, Kentucky today and learn how we can begin treating your PTSD.

PTSD and Addiction

It should come as no surprise that people with PTSD might turn to drugs or alcohol as a way to numb or escape from their stress feelings. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that as many as two out of ten vets suffering from PTSD also suffer substance abuse problems.

However, using drugs and alcohol to counteract PTSD symptoms can worsen those symptoms. Drugs and alcohol interrupt sleep patterns, impair judgment, and increase risk-taking behavior. Risk-taking behavior can lead to domestic problems, unemployment, even incarceration.

Because substance abuse impairs memory and perception, and trauma makes substance abuse more likely, both disorders create a complicated “dual diagnosis” situation. Dual diagnosis requires a combination of addiction and mental health treatment.

Dual Diagnosis patients require integrated treatment or treatment that address both disorders. Each member of the treatment team should have experience with both disorders.

Getting The Right Help Through Our PTSD Therapy in Louisville, Kentucky

Our PTSD therapy in Louisville, Kentucky is a treatment facility located in Louisville for men and women to begin their recovery. We offer intensive outpatient services (IOP), outpatient services (OP), individual and group counseling and experiential therapies. Our friendly and knowledgeable staff is ready for you to get healthy and stay healthy.

While at our treatment program, rest assured you will be under the care of a staff highly-trained in trauma-informed care. Through intense individual therapy sessions and other treatment modalities, you will learn to manage the painful symptoms of PTSD and understand the link between this pain and the addiction. Contact us today by phone, email, or form submission.