Mind / Body Health: The Effects of Traumatic Stress

What is a Traumatic Stress Reaction?

People who experience or witness horrible events such as school shootings, combat, rape, torture, natural disasters, accidents or other things in which their physical safety and life -- or the safety and life of others -- was in danger have experienced a traumatic stress.

People who are repeatedly exposed to life or death situations, such as EMT and rescue squad workers, police officers, fire fighters and medical personnel on burn wards or trauma units where stress levels and mortality rates are high also witness trauma. Anyone who has experienced these things has experienced a shock and, even if all ultimately escape danger, the people who lived through the event may feel like life “just isn’t the same anymore.”

People may experience a variety of reactions, many of which are understandable in the context of experiencing or witnessing traumatic events such as the hurricanes. Experiencing physical or emotional symptoms in response to a traumatic event is normal and is called a traumatic stress reaction.

Struggling with Thoughts of Suicide?

John can’t stop worrying. He’s lost his job and his retirement savings has taken a financial hit. His mortgage rates are increasing and he doesn’t think he’ll be able to make this month’s payment.

He has two children and a wife who are relying on him. He’s supposed to be the breadwinner, the man of the house, but lately he’s been so depressed he can’t even seem to get out of bed. The bills are piling up on the kitchen table and his wife can’t find any work to get them through this tough time.

He drinks to numb the pain but the alcohol just makes him angrier and he’s afraid he’s going to take it out on his family. Sometimes John thinks he’s become so much of a burden to his family it might be better if he wasn’t even here anymore. John wants help, but he doesn’t know where to turn. His world is crumbling around him and he can’t escape. John just doesn’t know what to do.

What Makes Kids Care?: Teaching Gentleness in a Violent World

In a world where violence and cruelty seem to be common and almost acceptable, many parents wonder what they can do to help their children to become kinder and gentler--to develop a sense of caring and compassion for others. Raising kids who care isn't a solution to violence by itself, but it's reasonable to worry that being exposed to a lot of violence -- whether it's on television or on the streets -- could make your children hard and uncaring.

Parenting: Being Supermom Stressing You Out?

Mothers are the world’s best jugglers: family, work, money—they seem to do it all. However, all that responsibility can often leave moms feeling overstretched and stressed out. According to a 2006 survey by the American Psychological Association (APA), women are more affected by stress than men and report engaging in unhealthy behaviors such as comfort eating, poor diet choices, smoking, and inactivity to help deal with stress.

The same survey showed women report feeling the effects of stress on their physical health more than men. With Mother’s Day fast approaching, it’s a good time for moms and their families to recognize the importance of addressing stress and managing it in healthy ways.

Eating Disorders

In a society that continues to prize thinness even as Americans become heavier than ever before, almost everyone worries about their weight at least occasionally. People with eating disorders take such concerns to extremes, developing abnormal eating habits that threaten their well-being and even their lives. This question-and-answer fact sheet explains how psychotherapy can help people recover from these increasingly common disorders.

Anxiety Disorders: The Role of Psychotherapy in Effective Treatment

Everyone feels anxious and under stress from time to time. Situations such as meeting tight deadlines, important social obligations or driving in heavy traffic, often bring about anxious feelings.

Such mild anxiety may help make you alert and focused on facing threatening or challenging circumstances. On the other hand, anxiety disorders cause severe distress over a period of time and disrupt the lives of individuals suffering from them. The frequency and intensity of anxiety involved in these disorders is often debilitating. But fortunately, with proper and effective treatment, people suffering from anxiety disorders can lead normal lives.