PTSD Treatment
Has exposure to a catastrophic event reduced the quality of your life as a First Responder?
Are you reliving memories of the event even when you don’t want to, such as having disturbing dreams that interfere with your sleep?
Do you find yourself avoiding places, people, or situations that remind you of the event?
Is your mood more irritable or negative than before?
Have you been feeling on edge, having trouble concentrating, or becoming emotionally reactive?
It can be difficult for some First Responders to acknowledge the difficulties that result from experiencing traumatic events, especially if there have been numerous critical events throughout your career. Yet, if some of the indicators above sound familiar, it is possible you may be experiencing PTSD. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder affects each person differently, and seeking an assessment by a licensed Psychologist having expertise knowing about PTSD symptoms can make all the difference.
What is PTSD or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a mental health condition that develops in some people following a sudden “traumatic” event – an unexpected, serious situation where a person either experiences first hand or witnesses someone else having a life-threatening event, one that feels shocking, terrifying, dangerous.
The body has built in mechanisms to help protect all of us from danger, and it is common to feel afraid during and shortly after a catastrophic event. You have probably heard of the “fight-or-flight” response, an automatic biological response which is triggered in emergencies to keep us from harm. Either we confront the emergency and “fight” or we flee if we determine the emergency may overwhelm our ability to defeat the crisis. What happens in PTSD is that the fight-or-flight response does not turn off as it should after the event is no longer threatening. This can impede a person’s daily life functioning.
While it is difficult to obtain precise information about the number of people exposed to catastrophic events, a national study of trauma exposure indicates that as many as 90% of the US population will be exposed to one or more traumatic events in their lifetime (*Ogle, Rubin, Bernsten, Siegler, 2013). By comparison, only about 8-9% of those exposed, eventually develop PTSD (*American Psychiatric Assn., 2013). Rates of PTSD are higher among First Responders, Veterans, and those whose professions place them at increased risk of trauma exposure.
High Risk Events
There is no question that you as First Responders are exposed to many crises in your typical daily work. Multiple intense events can accumulate month after month, year after year. While the courage, commitment, and sacrifices made by Police Officers, Firefighters, Paramedics, Veterans, and EMS providers strengthen your identity as strong community helpers, the crises can also take a personal toll.
Types of catastrophic events more commonly found to result in PTSD in First Responders (*Kirschman, Kamena, & Fay, 2014):
Serious line-of-duty injury or death
Officer involved shootings
Suicide of a co-worker
Injury or death of a child
Prolonged exposure to the dead or dying
Mass casualty incidents (e.g., airplane crash, terrorist attack)
Victim is known to the responder
Investigating child pornography
Incident jeopardizing the responder’s personal safety
Exposure to serious infectious diseases (e.g., AIDS, SARS, anthrax)
Organizational or personal betrayal
Almost everyone reacts with distress and disruption in their lives right after a traumatic event; most people recover on their own from those reactions. Those whose troubling symptoms persist for more than a month may be developing PTSD.
Help is available!
Please recognize that if you are a First Responder who has developed PTSD, you are not alone! Treatment for PTSD is available at First Responders Thrive, PLLC and can be highly effective in reducing or eliminating symptoms. Based in the positive results I have observed treating Veterans with PTSD over the last 10 years, I believe that if we both do our parts, you may feel better in a relatively short period of time. Treatment can change lives, the lives of the First Responder as well as his/her family and friends. Caring, compassionate, knowledgeable assistance is available close to home in central New Hampshire.
How I Work with Clients
When we first meet, I will provide some introductory information about myself, my professional experiences, and my practice so you have an idea who you are sitting with and how I may be able to assist you. You will have an opportunity to ask any questions you may have. I will listen carefully to your specific concerns so as to better understand what has brought you in. We will talk about your background and how you got to be the person you are today. With your permission, I may suggest we include your spouse/partner for at least one session so as to assist with understanding your PTSD treatment and to encourage ways to help at home. Because developing a trusting therapeutic relationship is a primary ingredient of effective psychotherapy, you can count on me to help you feel heard, understood, and supported. As we become acquainted, I will ask you to let me know how our sessions are working for you; this matters to me, and I care about your feedback. The more you can be your authentic self in the room, the better I will be able to understand your concerns and your ways of looking at life.
In my experience, I have seen positive results when a person attends therapy sessions regularly and invests sincere effort. Because you are a First Responder, I am confident in your ability to take initiative on your own behalf!
Are you still having doubts about beginning therapy?
Do you ever wonder…..
What if the other guys find out I need therapy and think I’m weak and can no longer be trusted?
This is a common concern. One of the biggest hurdles the First Responder community needs to confront is the stigma associated with admitting one has been affected by a traumatic event in the line of duty. This will be an important topic for us to discuss in person. Most of the stigma (some call it prejudice) is based on inaccurate understanding of mental health conditions, how common they are, and how helpful PTSD treatment can be. I can suggest ideas about what to say to help you balance your need for privacy with acknowledging to others that you have decided to engage in psychotherapy.
I’m a “do-it-yourselfer” – I keep thinking I should be able to handle these problems on my own. Do I really need professional help?
When you take initiative to help yourself, that makes for a great partnership in therapy! I’d be willing to bet there are many things you have already done to help yourself. I want to hear about your efforts because I too want you to be as independent and self-sufficient in this endeavor as possible. There are helpful coping strategies you can use while therapy gets underway; click here to learn more. While my experience tells me that it is never too late for a person suffering from PTSD to engage in treatment, it is my sincere hope to help First Responders to identify PTSD symptoms as early as possible in hopes of promoting an optimal recovery and quality of life.
How can I figure out the best type of treatment for my situation?
Deciding the best type of PTSD treatment to meet your unique needs will be based on a careful, thoughtful assessment and a collaborative decision-making process. Together we will weigh the pros and cons of several available evidence-based treatments. According to the National Center for PTSD, trauma-focused treatment for PTSD is the most effective treatment for reducing or eliminating PTSD symptoms. If you are interested in more detailed information about specific forms of treatment, please see the Blog Post: Evidence-based PTSD Treatments (this page is currently under construction).
I invite you to take the next step!
When you feel ready, please give Dr. Goss-Power a call for a FREE 20-minute telephone consultation at (603) 491-5510. I look forward to speaking with you soon.
Relevant Blog Posts
References:
American Psychiatric Association (2013). Post-traumatic stress disorder. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition. 271-280.
Kirschman, E., Kamena, M., & Fay, J. (2014). Death by 1,000 cuts: Critical incidents, trauma, and post-traumatic stress injuries, in Counseling Cops: What Clinicians Need to Know. 56-59.
Ogle, C., Rubin, D., Bernsten, D. & Siegler, I. (2013). The frequency and impact of exposure to potentially traumatic events over the life course. Clinical Psychological Science: A Journal of the Association for Psychological Science, 1, 426-434.