PTSD in Young Women
Stan, Clarence, Barry, and the Health Chatter team chat with Dr. Ida Fonkoue , Assistant Professor in the Physical Therapy Division at the University of Minnesota, about the connections between trauma, stress, and PTSD in young women .
Dr. Fonkoue serves as the director of the Neurobiology of Emotion, Sleep and Trauma (NEST) lab, where she and her team investigate how trauma affects neurocirculatory and hormonal systems, particularly as they relate to cardiovascular disease risk in women.
Join us for an enlightening discussion about how trauma shapes women’s cardiovascular health.
Join the conversation at healthchatterpodcast.com
Brought to you in support of Hue-MAN , who is Creating Healthy Communities through Innovative Partnerships.
More about their work can be found at https://www.huemanpartnershipalliance.org/
Research
What is post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD?
It is natural to feel afraid during and after a traumatic situation. Fear is a part of the body’s “fight-or-flight” response, which helps us avoid or respond to potential danger. People may experience a range of reactions after trauma, and most will recover from their symptoms over time. Those who continue to experience symptoms may be diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Who develops PTSD?
Anyone can develop PTSD at any age. This includes combat veterans and people who have experienced or witnessed a physical or sexual assault, abuse, an accident, a disaster, a terror attack, or other serious events. People who have PTSD may feel stressed or frightened, even when they are no longer in danger.
- The lifetime prevalence of PTSD for women is 10% to 12%, compared to 5% to 6% for men.
- This disparity is in part due to the fact that women and men experience different types of trauma and at different times in their lives, according to the study.
- Women, for example, are typically exposed to more interpersonal and high-impact trauma, such as sexual assault, than men, and at a younger age.
- Sexual assault carries one of the highest risks for PTSD
- Trauma early in life often has a greater impact, particularly when it involves multiple traumatic events.
- Traumatic stress affects different areas of the brains of boys and girls at different ages, and can interfere with neurobiological development and personality.
- Chronic fear, for example, whether in response to actual or anticipated threat, can lead to repeated activation of the physiological stress response system, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, altering the regulation of glucocorticoids such as cortisol.
To be diagnosed with PTSD, an adult must have all of the following for at least 1 month:
- At least one re-experiencing symptom
- Flashbacks—reliving the traumatic event, including physical symptoms, such as a racing heart or sweating
- Recurring memories or dreams related to the event
- Distressing thoughts
- Physical signs of stress
- At least one avoidance symptom
- At least two arousal and reactivity symptoms
- At least two cognition and mood symptoms
Why do some people develop PTSD and other people do not?
Not everyone who lives through a dangerous event develops PTSD—many factors play a part. Some of these factors are present before the trauma; others play a role during and after a traumatic event.
→ Risk factors that may increase the likelihood of developing PTSD include:
- Exposure to previous traumatic experiences, particularly during childhood
- Getting hurt or seeing people hurt or killed
- Feeling horror, helplessness, or extreme fear
- Having little or no social support after the event
- Dealing with stressors after the event, such as the loss of a loved one, pain and injury, or loss of a job or home
- Having a personal history or family history of mental illness or substance use
→ Resilience factors that may reduce the likelihood of developing PTSD include:
- Seeking out and receiving support from friends, family, or support groups
- Learning to feel okay with one’s actions in response to a traumatic event
- Having a coping strategy for getting through and learning from a traumatic event
- Being prepared and able to respond to upsetting events as they occur, despite feeling fear
How can I find help?
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has an online treatment locator to help you find mental health services in your area. If you or someone you know is struggling or having thoughts of suicide, call or text the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org . In life-threatening situations, call 911.
Specific Research Findings from Dr. Ida A. Fonkoue
- Prehypertension Augments Autonomic Imbalance in Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Experimental Biology, San Diego, CA, 04/2018
- Black adults display reduced sympathetic reactivity to mental stress compared to non-Hispanic white adults. Experimental Biology, Chicago, IL, 04/2017
- Acute alcohol consumption blunts the muscle sympathetic nerve activity response to mental stress in humans, Michigan Physiological Society, Detroit, MI, 05/2016
- Potential beneficial effects of device-guided slow breathing on hemodynamics, sympathetic activity, and arterial baroreflex sensitivity in prehypertensive veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder.
Sources
https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd
