Press Room

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is an understandable reaction to abnormal, overwhelming circumstances - circumstance that people are not usually prepared for.

Recent news stories have given considerable coverage to the issue of P. T. S. D. - from survivors of Hurricane Katrina, to participants of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The New York Times reports that in 2006, the US Army's Mental Health Advisory Team in 2006 conducted a survey of 1000 soldiers and marines, and found that 17 percent suffered from P.T.S.D. Mathematical models show that nearly 35 percent of soldiers and marines who deploy to Iraq will ultimately suffer from P.T.S.D.

The distressing symptoms of P.T.S.D. range from nightmares and flashbacks to headaches, chronic pain, troubled sleep, withdrawing from people, profound sadness, anxiety, guilt, anger fatigue, pessimism, sexual and relationship problems, emotional numbing, low self-esteem, and a wide range of medical problems.

For the millions who suffer from the effects of a traumatic experience and their loved ones; for medical and mental health professionals; and for those preparing for these professions; THE POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER SOURCEBOOK, Second Edition (McGraw-Hill Professional, Paperback, April 2009) offers clear, complete, and user-friendly understanding of the nature and treatment of P.T.S.D.

This sourcebook is designed:

· To explain and normalize the symptoms of P.T.S.D. sufferers

· To explain the principles of healing, therapies, and treatments

· To explore a wide range of current treatment options and suitable options

· To clearly explain how to move beyond P.T.S.D. - to thrive in spite of trauma

· To list a remarkable range of very useful resources that help one find the right counselor, support

This revised edition includes new information on healing from post traumatic stress for war veterans; new mindfulness techniques for reducing P.T.S.D.; new and future treatment technologies; and groundbreaking information on the link between post traumatic stress and addictions.

So many people with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder think they will never heal, and suffer needlessly for years.

THE POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER SOURCEBOOK helps us to understand how to transform and overcome this suffering.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Glenn R. Schiraldi, Ph.D., has served on the stress management faculties at the Pentagon, The International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, and the University of Maryland, where he received the Outstanding Teaching Award in the College of Health and Human Performance. He has served on the Board of Directors, Depressed and Related Affective Disorders Association, founded as a Johns Hopkins University, Department of Psychiatry, cooperative; the editorial board of the International Journal of Emergency Mental health, and the ABC News Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder working group.

He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, and is a Vietnam-era veteran.

THE POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER SOURCEBOOK

Second Edition

Author: Glenn R. Schiraldi, Ph.D.

ISBN-10: 007161494X; ISBN-13: 9780071614948

Paperback, $21.95

April, 2009

FIVE QUESTIONS FOR FOR Glenn R. Schiraldi, Ph.D.:

Q: What is P.T.S.D. and how widespread is the problem?

A: P.T.S.D. is a serious, treatable mental disorder that can result from experiencing or learning about an event that overwhelms our ability to cope. Traumatic events include rape, abuse of any kind, domestic violence, combat, crime, natural disasters, traffic accidents, terrorism, torture, sudden death of loved ones. Regardless of the traumatic event, PTSD involves symptoms in three clusters:

Re-experiencing the event through intrusive memories, nightmares, flashbacks, and/or disturbing feelings when you are trying to relax.
Arousal: Hyper vigilance, being easily startled, difficulty concentrating, sleep disturbance, angry eruptions and irritability.
Avoidance and Numbing: Avoiding anything that might remind one of the trauma, a shutting down of feelings and ability to relate with others, loss of interest in previously enjoyable pastimes, believing that you'll never live a normal life.

Our best estimates is that P.T.S.D. strikes 8-12% of the population, but the prevalence rates are much higher in high-risk groups, such as combat veterans, police officers, fire fighters, POWs, and survivors of rape and sexual abuse.

Q: How distressing is P.T.S.D.?

A. Very. It can impair functioning in any or all aspects of life (work, social, recreation).

80% of the time there is a co-morbid mental disorder, meaning a co-occurrence of stress-related disorders such as depression, panic disorder, or substance use disorder. In addition, P.T.S.D. often involves associated features, like chronic guilt or shame; shattered assumptions about self, others, and the world; Medical complaints; deliberate self-injury; disassociation (where the mind separates from body into a foggy, dreamlike state); personality changes; sexual dysfunction or promiscuity; and suicide.

Q: Does time heal?

A: Sadly, not usually. Even when the formal P.T.S.D. diagnosis changes with time, troubling symptoms and suffering can linger for decades, as we've found with WWII veterans. Sometimes difficult circumstances, such as being hospitalized in retirement years, can trigger P.T.S.D. And people are more vulnerable to experiencing P.T.S.D. from a recent trauma when traumatic memories from earlier years are still unresolved.

Q: Why is there such an increased interest in P.T.S.D. in recent years?

A. There are three factors:

* In 1980, the American Psychiatric Association published formal diagnostic criteria for P.T.S.D. following the Vietnam War. So now we have a way to define and agree upon what this problem is that has been around from the beginning of human history.

* The world is becoming increasingly dangerous. While there have always been traumas such as rape, domestic violence, sexual abuse, and war, technological advances and the erosion of family have increased our capacity and tendencies for inflicting violence on others.

* We're doing a better job of educating people. For example, there have been scholarly articles published on the mental health problems of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. This did not used to occur until years after wars, if ever.

Q: Is there reason to hope regarding PTSD?

A: There is great reason to hope:

· First, there are many treatment approaches that are very effective in helping people to process and neutralize the haunting traumatic memories. PTSD is nearly as treatable as depression when single interventions are tried.

· Medication can aid the recovery process, as can support groups and complementary approaches such as special Outward Bound programs.

· Finally, newer, promising treatments are being researched, and are making their way into clinics and vet centers.

The bottom line is that people need not suffer forever. There is hope and help.