Is Your Parent Dealing With
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?
Are you caring for your parent or parents with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder?
For a child, this experience can be very stressful, overwhelming and isolating but you do not have to go through it alone.
HelpingMinds provides the following information to help you understand what your loved one is going through and how you can look after yourself as you care for your mum or dad experiencing mental health challenges such as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD.
What is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that affects the mental state and the behaviour of a person when triggered by a traumatic experience. This mental health challenge is caused by experiencing or witnessing something traumatic such as death, accident or serious sexual assault. PTSD is the response or reaction of the brain after experiencing fear and danger caused by these horrible situations. This reaction which manifests from as early as 3 months after the experience, to years or decades after the event, is also the brain’s way of protecting the individual from recalling the terrifying experience that it had witnessed.
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is also associated with other mental health conditions such as Anxiety, Depression and Psychosis because an individual experiencing severe and chronic PTSD may exhibit symptoms of these mental health conditions, especially after recalling a traumatic episode. Symptoms of PTSD can be temporary and can be treated effectively with medications and therapy. Some conditions can be long-term but are manageable with proper treatment.
Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Adults
PTSD usually occurs within 3 months of experiencing or witnessing the traumatic event. Sometimes, the symptoms can start several years after – when you are faced with something that you associate with the traumatic experience. The symptoms range from moderate to serious conditions that can affect people of all ages differently.
These can be classified into Re-experiencing Symptoms, Avoidance Symptoms, Arousal & Reactivity Symptoms and Cognition & Mood Symptoms.
- Re-experiencing – Usually triggered by thoughts and emotions, flashbacks, bad dreams and frightening thoughts that let you relive the traumatic experience. During these periods, the individual may also experience sweating, heart racing, palpitations and other symptoms.
- Avoidance – Individuals with symptoms of PTSD would always try to avoid going back to the place where the traumatic experience happened. This also includes staying away from anything that may associate thoughts and feelings with that event.
- Arousal and Reactivity – Always feeling on edge such as quickly getting startled, shocked or scared, finding it hard to sleep and experiencing sudden outbursts are signs of PTSD that prevent the individual from feeling calm and focused as they live their daily lives.
- Cognition and Mood – Feeling depressed and unmotivated along with blaming themselves and hating the world are some signs of PTSD. This also includes losing interest in things and thoughts they once found enjoyable or pleasurable.
What causes Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?
Experiencing or witnessing a range and degree of traumatic events trigger PTSD in all ages. Traumatic events can be caused by the following:
- Death – sudden loss of a loved one or personally experiencing death (person dying in front of you due to natural causes or accidents).
- Stressful Event – being put under lots of stress that affects not only your mental state but your physical well-being as well, such as being in the centre of a war zone or personally being involved or dragged in a fight between your loved ones.
- Assault – experiencing verbal, sexual, physical and other assaults can make a deep impression that can affect a person for a long time.
- Accidents – serious accidents that create physical scars (such as loss of a limb or of a motor function) can also leave mental, emotional and psychological scars that can lead to PTSD.
- Lifestyle – being in an abusive relationship for a long time and other stressful events can also cause PTSD.
Diagnosing Parent with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Adulthood is the time when most people have experienced a lot of adventures that may have left an impression – in other cases, a traumatic experience that left them with PTSD. For children with parents or a parent experiencing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, seeing your parents try to raise your family can be difficult not only for themselves but for everyone involved.
All mental health challenges such as PTSD can affect several aspects of the patient’s life, it’s necessary for them to get the help and support they require to manage their condition and continue to live a normal life.
For children with parents or parents experiencing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, it is necessary to have an adult bring your mum or dad to see a GP or a Psychiatrist to get professional help. A diagnosis involves systematic interviews alongside ruling out other behavioural and mental health conditions.
Treatments for an Adult or Parent with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
For a patient to be diagnosed with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, they should experience a number of symptoms including re-experiencing, avoidance, arousal & reactivity and cognition & mood symptoms. A holistic treatment that involves Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) with social and emotional therapy along with proper medication is the best way to manage and treat PTSD. Other forms of therapy such as counselling and support groups can also contribute to the successful treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.
Some patients may recover quickly such as within a year, while others may develop chronic PTSD that would require constant and vigilant management and a good treatment plan to help the patient have a normal life while living with this mental health condition. The best way to help your parent with suspected PTSD is to bring them to get a proper diagnosis from a GP or Psychiatrist so that they can appropriate a treatment plan that should be discussed with the treating clinician.
Please note that HelpingMinds® does not offer Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. If you have PTSD and require CBT, you will require a referral from your GP. If you have someone close to you who is living with PTSD, we can offer you support and other services.
How to help your parent with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
It can be difficult for you to see your mum or dad live with PTSD. You can even feel hopeless if you do not know how to ease their burden. The best way to help them or anyone experiencing mental health problems is to get them to see a GP or a Psychiatrist for professional help. You can also turn to a mental health phone line or browse through mental health services online for professional help.
Aside from professional medical help, you can also connect them to several support services and support groups for PTSD patients. If you also want to know what support services are available for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder patients in Australia, specifically in Western Australia, so that you may connect your mum or dad to the help that they need, you may contact HelpingMinds for more information.
How to help yourself
Seeing your parents having a hard time with their PTSD can be an exhausting, frustrating, confusing and isolating experience. But you don’t have to go through it alone. HelpingMinds offers free and confidential support to Carers or to people who are caring for someone living with mental health challenges.
We offer free counselling, and support groups, as well as rest and revive activities for all ages. We can also conduct school holiday programs, family programs, and youth programs to help your community understand what you and your family are going through and what you can do to help yourself as you care for your mum or dad.
Browse our website for our range of programs and activities or get in touch with us for more information on how we can help you.
Get Support from HelpingMinds®
Would you like to know more about free and confidential mental health carer services and how we can support you? Please feel free to contact HelpingMinds® via the form below or on (08) 9427 7100. For one of our team to get back to you, we will require your email address and/or phone number. Please know all information provided will be treated completely confidential and in line with our privacy policy.