Managing Stress and Recovering from Trauma: Facts and Resources for
Veterans and Families
A National Center for PTSD Fact Sheet
by Julian Ford, Ph.D., Executive Division, White River Junction
Symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress
Have you ever:
- felt so tense, discouraged, or angry that you were
afraid you just couldn't cope?
- had an extremely stressful experience that you try not
to think about, but it still continues to bother you or is repeated in
nightmares?
- felt constantly on guard or watchful, or been on edge
or jumpy more than you really need to be?
- had a family member who seemed troubled in these ways?
If so, this information is for you.
Everyone Experiences Stress
Stress is a normal response of the body and mind. Everyone feels
stress when gearing up to deal with major life events (such as marriage,
divorce, births, deaths, or starting or ending a job) or handling everyday
hassles like arguments, financial headaches, deadlines, or traffic jams.
Physical signs of a stress response include:
- Rapid heartbeat
- Headaches
- Stomach aches
- Muscle tension
Emotional signs of stress can be both positive and upsetting:
- Excitement
- Exhilaration
- Joy
and
- Frustration
- Nervousness
- Discouragement
- Anxiety
- Anger
Stress Can Become a Problem
Repeated stress drains and wears down your body and mind. Stress is like
starting a car engine or pushing the accelerator pedal to speed up. If you keep
revving up the car, you'll burn out the starter and wear out both the brakes
and the engine.
Burnout occurs when repeated stress is not balanced by healthy time outs for
genuine relaxation. Stress need not be a problem if you manage it by smoothly
and calmly entering or leaving life's fast lane.
Managing Stress
Stress Management involves responding to major life events and everyday
hassles by relaxing as well as tensing up. Relaxation actually is a part
of the normal stress response. When faced with life's challenges, people not
only tense up to react rapidly and forcefully, but they also become calm in
order to think clearly and act with control.
Techniques for managing stress include:
- Body and mental relaxation
- Positive thinking
- Problem solving
- Anger control
- Time management
- Exercise
- Responsible assertiveness
- Interpersonal communication
Physical benefits of managing stress include:
- Better sleep, energy, strength, and mobility
- Reduced tension, pain, blood pressure, heart problems,
and infectious illnesses
Emotional benefits of managing stress include:
- Increased quality of life and well-being
- Reduced anxiety, depression, and irritability
Can stress become unmanageable?
Trauma can cause severe stress, which may become unmanageable despite the
best efforts of good stress management. Let's look at why this happens and what
you can do about it.
Traumatic events cause severe stress reactions that are particularly hard to
manage. Trauma involves a unique kind of physical/emotional shock that
escalates the "fight-flight" stress response (feeling angry or
scared) into "super-stress" (feeling terrified, stunned, horrified,
like your life is passing before your eyes, or so overwhelmed you blank out).
Trauma occurs when a person directly experiences or witnesses:
- Unexpected death
- Severe physical injury or suffering
- Close calls with death or injury
- Sexual violation
If you have ever experienced or witnessed war, disaster, a terrible
accident, sexual or physical abuse or assault, kidnapping or hostage-taking, or
life-threatening illnesses, you know the shock of trauma.
Nothing in life ever seems quite the same again, even if everything works
out for the best. Trauma leaves a lasting imprint of terror, horror, and
helplessness on the body and the mind. The world no longer seems safe,
manageable, or enjoyable. People no longer seem trustworthy or dependable.
Self-doubt and guilt eat away at your self-esteem. Faith and spirituality are
shaken or lost.
Traumatic stress can be managed, but special steps are necessary.
Steps in Managing Traumatic Stress
Step One is recognizing the signs of posttraumatic stress. Trauma is
so shocking that it causes memories that are impossible to forget or sometimes
impossible to recall. Trauma memories often repeatedly come back when you are
not trying to think about them.
Memories arise as unpleasant thoughts or nightmares. Sometimes you may
feel as if you cannot stop reliving the event. The shock of trauma also may
create blank spaces in your memory because it is too much for the mind to
handle, and so the mind takes a time out.
Traumatic stress reactions are normal responses to abnormal
events. Most people experience posttraumatic stress reactions for days or even
weeks after a trauma. Usually these reactions become less severe over time, but
they may persist and become a problem.
Step Two is recognizing the ways of coping with traumatic stress that
are natural but don't work, because they actually prolong and worsen the
normal posttraumatic stress reactions.
The ways of coping that do not work include:
- Trying to avoid people, places, or thoughts that are
reminders
- Shutting off feelings or connections to other people
that are reminders
- Being hyper-vigilant or on guard
Trying to avoid bad memories, trying to shut out feelings or people, or
trying to stay always alert may seem reasonable. However, they don't work because trauma controls your life if you
run from it.
Step Three is to get help from one of several special VA services for
veterans (and their families) who are coping with traumatic stress reactions or
PTSD (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder). Trauma memories cannot be erased, but the
stress they cause can become very manageable.
Find out more about PTSD resources for veterans and families by calling directly
or discussing the programs with your physician or nurse. Contact your local
Vet Center or one of the VA's specialized
PTSD treatment programs.
Related Fact Sheets
Common
reactions to trauma
An explanation of common reactions to trauma by Dr. Edna Foa
Coping with
PTSD
Provides information for PTSD survivors on positive techniques for dealing
with PTSD
Self
care following disasters
Answers questions about what people can do to cope with PTSD and where one
can go to get help
Suicide
Examines the connection between PTSD and suicide
VA
treatment programs
Brief information about the Department of Veterans Affairs' network of more
than 100 specialized programs for veterans with PTSD
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