Over the past years, since the start of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has been on the rise. Many PTSD Veterans have brought home the horrors of the battlefield, re-living the traumatic events in their minds each day. Some have been living with the atrocity of war memories for many years.
In many cases their lives now contain unemployment and divorce. They become lonely due to their inability to continue any type of social network in their civilian life. It is not uncommon for a lot of PTSDs to turn to drugs and alcohol to cope with the intense emotional and psychological responses to these past events. Eventually, finding a recovery treatment center to deal with their alcohol and drug abuse as well as their PTSD is what affords them the opportunity to find a life of normalcy.
War is only one event that can lead to PTSD. Witnessing a traumatic event that is hard to comprehend can create its development. Symptoms of post-traumatic stress are:
• Nightmares and flashbacks to the event
• Inability to express emotions or feelings
• Avoidance of any reminders of the event
• Quick to become angry, or startle easily
When someone has been through such an event and presenting the symptoms they sometimes turn to self-medication through alcohol or drugs. It’s a way of coping, but self-medicating can even make it worse. The feelings are better for a while, but then eventually a harder way of life begins, and some begin to shirk their responsibilities in life especially relationships with friends and family members. Eventually dependency on drugs and alcohol can become a problem.
There is hope though. Finding the right rehab treatment center to work though dependency issues as well as PTSD is a move to getting the answers to a better way of life.