Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can occur in people who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event.

1. NAME- SHIVANGI PRAKASH
CLASS- M.A. FINAL PSYCHOLOGY (III SEM)
APPLICATION NUMBER-
19d2792ee5f211e9a6124723808534dd
COURSE NAME- SWAYAM(ACADEMIC WRITING)
AFFILIATION- UGC
TOPIC- POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS
DISORDER(PTSD)

2. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
I would like to take this opportunity to express my deep sense of gratitude to all those people
without whom this assignment could have never been completed. First and foremost I
would like to thank the course “ACADEMIC WRITING” and its wonderful faculty for
providing an excellent platform to learn and guiding us throughout with their constant
support.
I would like to thank my parents for being an inexhaustible source of inspiration.
I would also like to extend my sincere gratitude to Dr. Anju Lata Singh, Assistant
Professor, VASANT KANYA MAHAVIDYALAYA (VKM), B.H.U., for her keen interest in the
work and ever useful practical knowledge and supervision.
Lastly, I would like to thank my friends Mr. Arpan Agrawal and Ms. Akanksha
Srivastava for their constant encouragement and moral support, without which I would
have never been able to give in my best.
All of these people were very helpful in bringing this work to conclusion.

3. • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric
disorder that can occur in people who have
experienced or witnessed a traumatic event such as a
natural disaster, a serious accident, a terrorist act,
war/combat, rape or other violent personal assault.
• In simple words, it is a mental health condition that is
triggered by a terrifying event by either experiencing
or witnessing it.
• The person reacts to this experience with fear and
helplessness and tries to avoid being reminded of it.

4. • PTSD has been known by many names in the past,
such as “shell shock” during the years of World War
I and “combat fatigue” after World War II.
• Symptoms usually begin within the first 3 months
after the trauma, although there may be a delay of
months, or even years, before criteria for the
diagnosis are met.
• PTSD can occur in all people, in people of any
ethnicity, nationality or culture.
• Also, it can occur at any age, beginning after first
year of life.
• Women are twice as likely as men to have PTSD.

5. Prevalence
• In the United States, projected lifetime risk for PTSD
using DSM-IV criteria at age 75 years is 8.7%.
Twelve-month prevalence among U.S. adults is about
3.5%.
• Lower estimates are seen in Europe and most Asian,
African, and Latin American countries, clustering
around 0.5% - 1.0%.

6. Diagnostic Criteria:
309.81 (F43.10)
The following criteria apply to adults, adolescents, and children older than 6 years:
A. Exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence in one (or
more) of the following ways:
1. Directly experiencing the traumatic event(s).
2. Witnessing, in person, the event(s) as it occurred to others.
3. Learning that the traumatic event(s) occurred to a close family member or close
friend. In cases of actual or threatened death of a family member or friend, the
event(s) must have been violent or accidental.
4. Experiencing repeated or extreme exposure to aversive details of the traumatic
event(s) (e.g., first responders collecting human remains: police officers repeatedly
exposed to details of child abuse).

7. B. Presence of one (or more) of the following intrusion symptoms
associated with the traumatic event(s), beginning after the
traumatic event(s) occurred:
1. Recurrent, involuntary, and intrusive distressing memories of
the traumatic event(s).
2. Recurrent distressing dreams in which the content and/or
affect of the dream are related to the traumatic event(s).
3. Dissociative reactions (e.g., flashbacks) in which the individual
feels or acts as if the traumatic event(s) were recurring.

8. 4. Intense or prolonged psychological distress at exposure
to internal or external cues that symbolize or resemble an
aspect of the traumatic event(s).
5. Marked physiological reactions to internal or external
cues that symbolize or resemble an aspect of the
traumatic event(s).

9. C. Persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the
traumatic event(s), beginning after the traumatic event(s)
occurred, as evidenced by one or both of the following:
1. Avoidance of or efforts to avoid distressing memories,
thoughts, or feelings about or closely associated with the
traumatic event(s).
2. Avoidance of or efforts to avoid external reminders (people,
places, conversations, activities, objects, situations) that
arouse distressing memories, thoughts, or feelings about or
closely associated with the traumatic event(s).

10. D. Negative alterations in cognition and mood associated
with the traumatic event(s), beginning or worsening after the
traumatic event(s) occurred, as evidenced by two (or more) of
the following:
1. Inability to remember an important aspect of the traumatic
event(s) (typically due to dissociative amnesia and not to
other factors such as head injury, alcohol, or drugs).
2. Persistent and exaggerated negative beliefs or expectations
about oneself, others, or the world (e.g., “I am bad,” “No one
can be trusted,” ‘The world is completely dangerous,” “My
whole nervous system is permanently ruined”).
3. Persistent, distorted cognitions about the cause or
consequences of the traumatic event(s) that lead the
individual to blame himself/herself or others.

11. 4. Persistent negative emotional state (e.g., fear, horror,
anger, guilt, or shame).
5. Markedly diminished interest or participation in
significant activities.
6. Feelings of detachment or estrangement from others.
7. Persistent inability to experience positive emotions (e.g.,
inability to experience happiness, satisfaction, or loving
feelings).

12. E. Marked alterations in arousal and reactivity associated with
the traumatic event(s), beginning or worsening after the
traumatic event(s) occurred, as evidenced by two (or more) of
the following:
1. Irritable behaviour and angry outbursts typically expressed as
verbal or physical aggression toward people or objects.
2. Reckless or self-destructive behaviour.
3. Hypervigilance.
4. Exaggerated startle response.
5. Problems with concentration.
6. Sleep disturbance (e.g., difficulty falling or staying asleep or
restless sleep).

13. F. Duration of the disturbance (Criteria B, C, D, and E) is
more than 1 month.
G. The disturbance causes clinically significant distress or
impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas
of functioning.
H. The disturbance is not attributable to the physiological
effects of a substance (e.g., medication, alcohol) or another
medical condition.

14. Diagnostic criteria for Children of 6 Years
and Younger:
A. In children 6 years and younger, exposure to actual or threatened death,
serious injury, or sexual violence in one (or more) of the following ways:
1. Directly experiencing the traumatic event(s).
2. Witnessing, in person, the event(s) as it occurred to others, especially
primary caregivers.
3. Learning that the traumatic event(s) occurred to a parent or caregiving
figure.

15. B. Presence of one (or more) of the following intrusion
symptoms associated with the traumatic event(s),
beginning after the traumatic event(s) occurred:
1. Recurrent, involuntary, and intrusive distressing
memories of the traumatic event(s).
2. Recurrent distressing dreams in which the content
and/or affect of the dream are related to the traumatic
event(s).
3. Dissociative reactions (e.g., flashbacks) in which the
child feels or acts as if the traumatic event(s) were
recurring.

16. 4. Intense or prolonged psychological distress at
exposure to internal or external cues that symbolize or
resemble an aspect of the traumatic event(s).
5. Marked physiological reactions to reminders of the
traumatic event(s).

17. C. One (or more) of the following symptoms, representing
either persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the
traumatic event(s) or negative alterations in cognitions
and mood associated with the traumatic event(s), must be
present, beginning after the event(s) or worsening after the
event(s):
Persistent Avoidance of Stimuli
1. Avoidance of or efforts to avoid activities, places, or
physical reminders that arouse recollections of the
traumatic event(s).
2. Avoidance of or efforts to avoid people, conversations,
or interpersonal situations that arouse recollections of the
traumatic event(s).

18. Negative Alterations in Cognitions
3. Substantially increased frequency of negative
emotional states (e.g., fear, guilt, sadness, shame,
confusion).
4. Markedly diminished interest or participation in
significant activities, including constriction of play.
5. Socially withdrawn behaviour.
6. Persistent reduction in expression of positive
emotions

19. D. Alterations in arousal and reactivity associated
with the traumatic event(s), beginning or worsening
after the traumatic event(s) occurred, as evidenced by
two (or more) of the following:
1. Irritable behaviour and angry outbursts typically
expressed as verbal or physical aggression toward
people or objects.
2. Hypervigilance.
3. Exaggerated startle response.
4. Problems with concentration.
5. Sleep disturbance (e.g., difficulty falling or staying
asleep or restless sleep).

20. E. The duration of the disturbance is more than 1
month.
F. The disturbance causes clinically significant distress
or impairment in relationships with parents, siblings,
peers, or other caregivers or with school behaviour.
G. The disturbance is not attributable to the
physiological effects of a substance (e.g., medication or
alcohol) or another medical condition.

21. ETIOLOGY:
1- Genetic factor-
 Inherited mental health risks such as family history of anxiety
and depression can greatly cause PTSD.
2- Psychological factor-
 Serious accidents
 Sexual/physical assault
 Childhood abuse

22. • War
• Conflict
• Terrorist attacks
• Kidnapping
• House fires
• Suicide of a family member or friend
• Natural disaster

23. 3- Change in brain-
* Abnormality in the size of hippocampus.
* The size of the hippocampus appears smaller.
* The malfunctioning in hippocampus may prevent flashbacks and nightmares
from being properly processed, and so the anxiety they generate does not reduce
over time.
4- Environmental factor-
Lack of social support after an event. Ex- rape.

24. REFERENCES:
• American Psychiatric Association (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental
disorders:DSM-5. American Psychiatric Pub.
• Kaplan, H. J., &Sadock, B. J. (2004). Synopsis of comprehensive textbook of psychiatry (10th
Ed.). Baltimore: Williams & Wlkins.

25. FEEDBACK:
Swayam has provided all of us with the opportunity to be a part of the
digital learning in this digital era. It has made learning more easily
accessible and effective by offering more than 1000 courses taught by the
best faculty across the country. One such course is Academic Writing.
This course has been really very beneficial for students like us
especially who had no prior knowledge of what exactly needs to be done
during research. It has given a whole gist of the work that people do in
their 3-5 years research period in a span of just 15 weeks. The online
lectures, the study materials, the webinars that were organized all played
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All in all, this course has been very productive in that it has given such
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without any complexity.