What is PTSD?

As we discussed in Chapter 2 of this book, experiencing a traumatic event is like going through the grief process. We need to emotionally process the painful emotions. There is no way to the other side of the pain except through it. But...

How Do People React to Trauma?

Cynthia awoke in the middle of the night to a hand over her mouth, feeling something sharp against her neck, and a voice in the dark saying, “Don’t scream or I’ll cut you.” As we ask in the introduction to this book, where is...

Afterword in the Face of the COVID-19 Pandemic

As we are going to press with PTSD: What Everyone Needs to Know, we are in the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Today there are 1,237,420 confirmed cases globally, 321,762 in the United States, with over 67,000 deaths to date. We...

How are Children Impacted by Trauma?

Children are not just little adults. Children understand the world differently and have “rules” for the way their world is supposed to work. It can be very difficult for an adult to make sense of a traumatic event; it can be nearly impossible for...

What help is available to those Who have experienced Trauma?

A psychological concept known as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs helps us understand how to help trauma survivors. Basic human needs include food, water, warmth, and rest. These basic needs are closely followed by our safety needs to make sure we...

Introduction

What is trauma? When we listen to the news or go online, we often hear or read about trauma and traumatic events rocking our world. Some of these events have ripple effects beyond those directly affected, and many events go undocumented, unreported, and often...

Afterword

A message of hope As we have discussed throughout this book, we live in a dangerous world, and, unfortunately, about 70 percent of us may encounter a potentially traumatic event in our lifetime, with many of us experiencing more than one trauma. But the good news...

What Are the Treatments for PTSD?

In Chapter 3 of this book, we described what it’s like to live with PTSD. The bad news is it stinks to have PTSD, as it disrupts people’s lives, health, and relationships. And as hard as it is to live with PTSD, it...