PTSD: the facts, the stigma, and how to help

Mental health is a notion that goes unaddressed, especially in the United States. It’s swept under the rug or shoved aside for another time or another day. We as an American society undervalue our nation’s mental health.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, affects millions of people daily. It is estimated that one in thirteen people will develop PTSD at some point  in their lifetime. There are multiple ways one can be affected by PTSD, including extreme trauma later developing into PTSD.

Usually when thinking of PTSD, we think of war and of our soldiers and veterans. In Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), an estimated 11-20 percent of servicemen and servicewomen endured traumas leading to the development of PTSD.

Aside from mainly affecting those serving our country, PTSD is seen in many other cases. Rape, sexual assault, domestic abuse, and other types of survivors experience PTSD at some point in their lives.

PTSD is real. PTSD is serious.

People aren’t just affected mentally. Extreme trauma can affect the way people physically and emotionally live as well.

So why do so many of these cases go untreated?  It’s devastatingly simple.

We’re taught at a young age that we have to be brave, strong, and fearless.  Without those, we won’t be successful in life. When we aren’t those things, society views us as failures, weak, or lesser, like certain politicians have implied about veterans.

We can see the reflections of those societal views throughout the way our government, as well as our medical care providers, treat those suffering from not only PTSD, but other mental health problems as well.

The stigma is that you’re weak if you don’t meet society’s standards for mental health. A lot of medical providers push the use of prescribed medications to combat these issues rather than use the dual benefits of psychiatric therapy and medications.

These medications, along with intensive forms of therapy, are not only expensive, but also hard to get without certain types of insurance, leaving many untreated.

So, what can you do to help?

Educate yourself

You can’t help someone if you don’t know what it is they’re experiencing.

Fight the Stigma

Remind your loved ones it’s OK to not meet society’s ridiculous standards.

Be aware

Remember everyone is fighting their own battles.