What Is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and How Is It Treated?

Want to know what post-traumatic stress disorder is? Have terrible things happened to you, and you suspect a disorder in yourself or your child but do not know which doctor treats PTSD? Specialists at CSM Clinic in Kyiv will answer all your questions. At our full-cycle clinic, your condition can be assessed in one day, a treatment plan can be drawn up, and you will be helped to address the problem. We treat post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adults.

"Post-war syndrome", PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder: recurrent (for more than 1 month), intrusive memories of a traumatic and/or stressful event. The disorder usually appears within 6 months after the event. The event does not have to be experienced directly by the patient. A person can be an indirect participant, for example a witness to others being seriously injured, killed or exposed to mortal danger. Sometimes it is even enough to learn about events that happened to close people.

The lifetime prevalence of PTSD is 9%, and within 12 months after an event it is 4% (in peacetime) and 20% (during hostilities). To avoid becoming part of the first figure, it is important to understand one thing: there is nothing shameful in PTSD, just as there is nothing shameful in seeking psychological help; you go to a doctor when you face any other kind of pain. Seeking medical help is all the more important when it concerns a child's mental health. 

Since the start of the active phase of Ukraine's war with Russia, every Ukrainian, regardless of gender and age, has been at risk of developing PTSD. (Women are about twice as likely to develop PTSD as men: about 8% of men and 20% of women who experienced traumatic events.)

In addition, PTSD symptoms include nightmares and flashbacks.

A specific symptom of PTSD in children is reenacting the traumatic event or some of its aspects through play.

In children, the clinical picture of the consequences of PTSD depends on age. In adolescence, the consequences may appear as they do in adults.

Only acute disorders are likely to respond fully to treatment. That is why it is so important to seek professional help in time rather than write everything off as a bad patch in life or an inability to adapt to the situation. At CSM Clinic in Kyiv, you will be supported at every step of dealing with the disorder, with psychological and medication-based care and rehabilitation.

Diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder

The diagnosis is based on the patient's history.

And this is not just a conversation with the patient. A clinic specialist will administer a special PTSD test, which helps determine whether a predisposition to post-traumatic stress disorder is present and how pronounced it is.

Because a person with PTSD unconsciously tends to hide their real condition, a psychiatrist sometimes holds additional consultations in the presence of the patient's close people (a relative, a friend, or anyone from the patient's close circle). This approach helps with the differential diagnosis of PTSD and with excluding other conditions with similar symptoms.

PTSD treatment at the clinic

Treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder at CSM Clinic in Kyiv consists of psychological and medication-based care.

Psychological therapy in children and adults may include:

• cognitive behavioral therapy (correcting the thinking patterns that lead to negative feelings and actions):
• exposure (talk) therapy, in which the patient is re-immersed in the traumatic events, but only in a controlled and safe environment, which allows the person to adapt to the frightening situation and develop protection;
• the stress inoculation method, which helps identify triggers and then build coping strategies for the fears arising from memories of recent traumatic events (imagination starts to win over the negative reactions to memories at the psychological level);
• desensitization, which relieves anxiety through relaxation: it helps not only to process and reinterpret anxious memories but also to change the reaction to them;

• acceptance and commitment therapy, in which the person learns not to mask their emotions and sensations but to accept them as a given that cannot be changed for the time being;

• hypnotherapy, and so on.

Massage and relaxation may be used as supporting methods.

Medication treatment of PTSD includes antidepressants, anti-anxiety drugs and antihypertensive agents.

However, keep in mind that medications relieve PTSD symptoms (they may improve concentration and sleep, ease depression, reduce restlessness and anxiety, suppress nightmares, and so on) but do not eliminate the underlying problem.

It is also important to understand that if you or someone close to you has PTSD, it does not mean the person is incapacitated or that life must stand still during treatment. Such an approach worsens the mental state. The main thing to understand is that life goes on, and it can be wonderful even after terrible events!

To ease their condition during treatment, a patient should:

• keep doing routine things and live "here and now" rather than "then and there", following the usual schedule even when it feels like "I don't want to";
• use breathing exercises during panic attacks and fear;
• not forget about proper nutrition;
• learn to ask for help with everything: work, study, household chores and so on (this is a great way to get around flare-ups of symptoms, especially poor concentration and fear of loud sounds);
• learn to accept the support and help of friends and family properly (it is good to have people nearby who care and are ready to help and support in a difficult life situation); if there are no close people, it is important to find a support group of people who have faced a similar problem, or a psychotherapist;
• avoid drugs and alcohol (the relief they give is an escape to nowhere; they help to avoid symptoms temporarily but only make PTSD worse in the future)

Otherwise, the PTSD treatment approach is chosen individually.

You can also turn for help to family, friends or anyone who can listen and comfort you without judging whether your reactions are right or wrong. If there is no one around whom you can trust unconditionally, it is better to find a psychologist or psychotherapist for a short course of crisis psychotherapy.

Advantages of PTSD treatment at the clinic

1. CSM Clinic in Kyiv is a full-cycle medical center: here you can undergo full diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases, including post-traumatic stress disorder.
2. Specialized methods for treating mental disorders.
3. Experienced psychologists, psychotherapists and psychiatrists with extensive practical experience in treating PTSD.
4. Comfortable conditions for diagnosis and therapy.
5. Affordable prices.

Want to know how to help yourself, a loved one or a child after a traumatic event? Suspect that PTSD is developing? Diagnosis, prevention and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder in Kyiv at CSM Clinic are carried out by experienced specialists using established methods and treatment protocols. Remember: health is not only physical well-being but also mental well-being.

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