If left untreated, complex PTSD can become life-threatening. It raises the risk of developing anxiety, depression, addictive behavior, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts. Chronic pain, fatigue, and changes in eating and sleeping patterns are all possible physical health problems.
Studies suggest that trauma is associated with permanent changes in key areas of your brain, including your: Amygdala: The part of your brain that processes fear and other emotions. Hippocampus: The part of your brain that's largely responsible for learning and memory.
There is no research that suggests CPTSD worsens with age. However, if it goes untreated, CPTSD symptoms may worsen over time.
difficulty controlling your emotions. feeling very angry or distrustful towards the world. constant feelings of emptiness or hopelessness. feeling as if you are permanently damaged or worthless.
PTSD is one of APM's supported conditions for disability employment services. Through the Disability Employment Services program, APM assists people with illnesses, injuries, and disabilities in finding and keeping employment. Participation in this program is free since the Australian Government funds it.
Symptoms of complex PTSD
feelings of worthlessness, shame and guilt. problems controlling your emotions. finding it hard to feel connected with other people. relationship problems, like having trouble keeping friends and partners.
But while each person's struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder or complex PTSD is unique, recovery is possible for each and every person. But is complex PTSD curable? Despite its own inherent barriers to healing, complex post-traumatic stress disorder is treatable.
It's normal for anyone who has endured or witnessed experiences like these to have a strong emotional response that could last for days or weeks.
PTSD is hard to treat
Instead of feeling like a normal memory, trauma memories feel like they are still happening, right now in the present. At the same time, the brain stays in fight or flight mode, constantly feeling threatened even when the person is safe.
People with PTSD can make wonderful parents, just like anyone else. Something that many people with PTSD may not consider, however, is that once they become parents, their kids could trigger their PTSD.
Either Complex PTSD or PTSD may occur in response to trauma, and they have various symptoms in common. C-PTSD is caused by ongoing trauma which lasts for months or years, while PTSD may be caused by a single traumatic event. The symptoms of C-PTSD are also more complex and may take longer to treat.
Symptoms of CPTSD
Negative self-perception, including feelings of guilt, shame, or powerlessness. Dissociation from reality, including loss of memory, flashbacks, or periods of feeling disconnected from one's mind or body.
The symptoms of complex PTSD are highly debilitating and can cause chronic emotional disquiet. However, with caring, compassionate, expert treatment its symptoms can be managed and its life-altering effects controlled. An individual recovering from complex PTSD faces a long, challenging road.
Neuroimaging studies have demonstrated significant neurobiologic changes in PTSD. There appear to be 3 areas of the brain that are different in patients with PTSD compared with those in control subjects: the hippocampus, the amygdala, and the medial frontal cortex.
CPTSD causes lack of trust, shame, and voicelessness.
Complex trauma survivors — those with CPTSD — often have a distrust of self and others. They may feel like a burden to people, have shame, and be unable to make choices or have a voice for self.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that's triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event.
Not everyone with complex PTSD experiences symptoms of dissociation. But those who do may feel detached from their surroundings, their actions, their body. They may experience gaps in their memory surrounding the original trauma or even regarding a normal, everyday task.
Psychosis symptoms were explained by trauma exposure to a considerate degree and at a level similar to CPTSD; a moderate correlation was also found between CPTSD and Psychosis. Physical/emotional neglect was the only traumatic life event that significantly and most strongly predicted both conditions.
For example, a partner's concern can be interpreted as judging or shaming, and may make a person with cPTSD feel emotionally triggered. They may feel confused or angered which can trigger hypervigilance due to feeling unsafe. As a result, many will run, push away, shut down, or lash out.