Helping your Teen Through PTSD
Post-traumatic stress disorder is something that no one should ever have to go through. Unfortunately, many teens do end up having this disorder for various reasons. There are ways to help ease the symptoms of PTSD and your child will need all your support to help get through this time in their lives.
What is PTSD?
PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental disorder that can happen after a traumatic event. PTSD can affect anyone, whether they have strong mental health or not. PTSD can be brought on by a car accident, death of a friend, a tragedy in the family, tragedy at school, rape, molestation, or an accident of some kind. There are many symptoms of PTSD and they include:
• Nightmares.
• Depression.
• Anxiety.
• Sleep issues.
• Irritability.
• Concentration problems.
• Emotional issues.
Getting Diagnosed
If your teen has been through a traumatic event or you suspect that they have, you should be making an appointment with their physician. You will also want to speak with your teen at length about what is bothering them. Don’t necessarily bring up the traumatic event. Just try to help alleviate the symptoms and get your teen to the doctor where they will make the diagnose themselves or refer you to a counselor that can determine whether your child has PTSD. Once it is determined that your teen is suffering from this, you can start treatment. Starting treatment immediately will help improve your teen’s mental health quickly.
How to Manage PTSD
Once your teen has been diagnosed with PTSD, you will want to do all that you can to help your child. The symptoms of this disorder can range from mild to severe and can interrupt day to day life. Your child may find it impossible to focus on their school work and may come withdrawn from society. There are several ways that you can help your child and the biggest thing you should do is to get your child into counseling.
Taking your child to a teen ptsd treatment north salt lake ut will help your child work through the trauma and gain a better focus on life. During treatment, your child will focus on getting better. Doing things like relaxation techniques and intensive therapy can help your child to rid themselves of any bad thoughts. A lot of times, due to a traumatic event, teens will blame themselves and that will eat at them. A counselor will work with them and show them that nothing is their fault and help them to work on ways to get better. It will be a long road but with the right counselor, your teen will get the help he or she needs.
If you believe that your child is suffering from PTSD, call your doctor or counselor today. The sooner treatment starts, the better off your teen will be. Encourage your teen the best that you can and help them to feel safe. They will know that they can come to you for anything and that you will help them through this time and help them to get better.
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