In: Probation journal: the journal of community and criminal justice, Band 40, Heft 1, S. 26-27
ISSN: 1741-3079
Terry Crolley of Merseyside Probation Service's Research, Evaluation and Information Unit gives his experience of Hillsborough and questions the validity of a punitive response to offenders surviving disasters not of their own making
Post-traumatic stress is observed in people who have been directly exposed to traumatic mental and physical stimuli in the form of post-traumatic stress disorder of systemic reactions. Not only soldiers returning from military missions are affected by it, but also victims of all kinds of disasters, rescuers, providing the former with assistance, people pursuing the stress-related professions, including firefighters, paramedics, as well as fans of extreme sports and people, who have experienced unusual situations, such as death of a beloved person, divorce or a traffic accident. The stress symptoms follow the triggering factor. Reaction of the limbic system, associated with the circulation of emotional state, which takes place in the Papez area, causing a variety of vegetative symptoms, especially the circulatory ones, has a vital role to play. The consequences of post-traumatic stress affect both mental and emotional changes, as well as the changes in dynamic stereotype, and they also manifest indirect effects in the family life of an entity and its immediate surrounding. It is important to provide the people affected by post-traumatic stress syndrome with psychological and psychiatric care. The purpose of this article is to review the available literature data on both the post-traumatic stress disorder and its consequences as well as to focus on the key issues related to the prevention and assistance provided for people affected by the syndrome.
Post-traumatic stress is observed in people who have been directly exposed to traumatic mental and physical stimuli in the form of post-traumatic stress disorder of systemic reactions. Not only soldiers returning from military missions are affected by it, but also victims of all kinds of disasters, rescuers, providing the former with assistance, people pursuing the stress-related professions, including firefighters, paramedics, as well as fans of extreme sports and people, who have experienced unusual situations, such as death of a beloved person, divorce or a traffic accident. The stress symptoms follow the triggering factor. Reaction of the limbic system, associated with the circulation of emotional state, which takes place in the Papez area, causing a variety of vegetative symptoms, especially the circulatory ones, has a vital role to play. The consequences of post-traumatic stress affect both mental and emotional changes, as well as the changes in dynamic stereotype, and they also manifest indirect effects in the family life of an entity and its immediate surrounding. It is important to provide the people affected by post-traumatic stress syndrome with psychological and psychiatric care. The purpose of this article is to review the available literature data on both the post-traumatic stress disorder and its consequences as well as to focus on the key issues related to the prevention and assistance provided for people affected by the syndrome.
Adoption was included for the first time at the world conference of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies last Easter in Amsterdam. Sue Wells presents extracts from her presentation to the conference, based upon her own research as a birthmother.
Post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has become a global health issue, with prevalence rates ranging from 1.3% to 37.4%. As there is little current data on PTSD in Canada, an epidemiological study was conducted examining PTSD and related comorbid conditions. Modified versions of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) PTSD module, the depression, alcohol and substance abuse sections of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI), as well as portions of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) were combined, and administered via telephone interview in English or French. Random digit dialing was used to obtain a nationally representative sample of 2991, aged 18 years and above from across Canada. The prevalence rate of lifetime PTSD in Canada was estimated to be 9.2%, with a rate of current (1‐month) PTSD of 2.4%. Traumatic exposure to at least one event sufficient to cause PTSD was reported by 76.1% of respondents. The most common forms of trauma resulting in PTSD included unexpected death of a loved one, sexual assault, and seeing someone badly injured or killed. In respondents meeting criteria for PTSD, the symptoms were chronic in nature, and associated with significant impairment and high rates of comorbidity. PTSD is a common psychiatric disorder in Canada. The results are surprising, given the comparably low rates of violent crime, a small military and few natural disasters. Potential implications of these findings are discussed.
Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at veterans 8 years after war, to find out relation of PTSD with other demographic and health related variables and discover the impact of depression and trauma on PTSD on 687 veterans from six municipalities in Kosovo. Method: Participants were 687 war veterans selected from six regions of Kosovo during 2008. The Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ-40), was administered to measure PTSD and Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL-25) for depression and anxiety. Pearson chi-square, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and multiple regressions were used to analyze the data. Results: Results indicated that 11.2 % of veterans even 8 years after the war ended were suffering from PTSD. Six percent of veterans with PTSD did not seek medical help. They reported to have had emotional problems and physical problems, but they did not seek medical help. The findings suggest that self-medication may be one way of veterans dealing with PTSD symptoms. Veterans with PTSD symptoms were more concerned with "family issues" than those without PTSD symptoms. Conclusions: The study found that 8 years after the war the veterans of the war in Kosovo suffer PTSD symptoms and that a good number of them do not seek help for this problem. The establishment of adequate services by the state would transform these veterans' dealing with PTSD not into a moral challenge but into a fundamental right to equal and high-quality services.