Complex post-traumatic stress disorder (c-PTSD or cPTSD) describes a set of disruptive symptoms that emerge after experiencing inescapable traumatic life events, especially those of a horrific or threatening nature or which recur or accumulate over a period of time. Such events are typically interpersonal, often involving abusive relationships with parents, caregivers, or other responsible adults at a young age. It may also be sparked by torture, the experience of being a refugee or asylum seeker, being held in a concentration camp or as a slave, or living through a genocidal campaign or other organized campaigns of violence.
Someone experiencing complex PTSD may struggle to control their anger, may make self-destructive decisions, have low self-esteem, find it difficult to trust others or find intimacy in relationships, or generally feel guilt, hopelessness, worthlessness, or despair. Any or all of these symptoms can hamper their everyday functioning.
What Is Complex PTSD?
Complex PTSD is not a recognized diagnosis in the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), partly due to its overlap with symptoms of PTSD. However, it is recognized in the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD).
Post-traumatic stress disorder can emerge after surviving a powerfully disturbing experience of any kind, such as a physical attack, sexual assault, or car accident, or witnessing a death or surviving a natural disaster. Complex PTSD is understood as more likely to develop after a repeated or chronic series of abusive or hurtful incidents lasting months or even years, especially during childhood, and the symptoms of c-PTSD tend to be more severe, and longer-lasting, than for those living with PTSD.
How are the symptoms of c-PTSD different from PTSD?
People living with c-PTSD tend to experience greater intrapersonal strife: They have a more negative perception of themselves; they may feel shame and have a sense that they are different from everyone else. They may also experience more volatile or chaotic personal relationships and greater emotional dysfunction—for example, they can be more prone to rage. And they are more likely than those with PTSD to engage in impulsive, risky, or self-destructive behavior.
What are the most common symptoms of complex PTSD?
According to the ICD, complex PTSD may be present when someone experiences, for a period of at least several weeks, all three of the core elements of post-traumatic stress disorder:
* Re-experiencing the event through vivid intrusive memories, flashbacks, or repeated dreams or nightmares, accompanied by feelings of being overwhelmed or terrified, with strong physical sensations
* Avoidance of anything that might lead to re-experiencing aspects of the traumatic event, including people, places, or media. Someone might avoid conversations that remind them of the experience, or strain to avoid thoughts of it, or they may try to change their environment; for example, by moving or changing jobs.
* A heightened perception of threat leading to hypervigilance or making someone easily startled. A person experiencing c-PTSD may constantly feel under threat and may worry that those close them are as well.
Along with these core symptoms of PTSD, someone with c-PTSD may be highly reactive to minor stressors, have violent outbursts, or engage in reckless, self-destructive behavior. In some cases of c-PTSD, a person may be emotionally numb, unable to experience pleasure or other positive emotions. The person may come to believe that they are flawed or worthless and feel deep guilt or shame because they blame themselves for falling victim to their trauma or for failing to protect others who experienced it. People experiencing c-PTSD may also have suicidal thoughts.
Treating c-PTSD
Complex PTSD is generally treated in the same way as post-traumatic stress syndrome, with a combination of talk therapy, medication, and family and social support. But as many as half of those living with either condition find that current therapies do not bring full relief from symptoms; to help them, experimental approaches are being explored.
What type of therapy is best for complex PTSD?
Cognitive behavioral therapy—specifically, a type known as trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy—is most often the first choice of therapists helping people deal with c-PTSD. In sessions, a therapist will help an individual identify the thoughts and thought patterns that keep them stuck on their traumatic experiences and begin to replace them with more positive, more productive ones; recognize symptoms quickly and develop strategies to address them in the moment; and, gradually, work toward facing, rather than avoiding, things that remind them of their trauma, sometimes through what’s known as exposure therapy.
What medications might be prescribed to those dealing with c-PTSD?
There are no medications formally approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of PTSD or c-PTSD, but clinicians may prescribe antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications, and sleep aids to individuals living with symptoms of the conditions.
Find the original article here https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/complex-ptsd