Supporting a Loved One With PTSD

Most people associate post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with military service, but you don’t have to be a veteran to develop this mental health disorder. 

Any woman, man, or child who is faced with a life-threatening event or situation may find themselves caught in a spiral of reliving those horrific moments, both in sleep and in their waking life.

If you love somebody with PTSD, you may find yourself struggling with your own mental health. You want to help them, but you don’t know how. Maybe you feel guilty, maybe you feel helpless. You may even be angry at your loved one for not being able to “get past” their past.

Joseph Kwentus, MD, and our team at Precise Research Centers understand that mental health disorders affect the entire family and the inner circle of those who struggle with them. 

At our offices in Flowood, Mississippi, we enroll women and men who have PTSD in clinical trials that expose them to new medications as well as supportive therapies to help them resolve trauma.

Approximately 6% of women and men in the United States suffer from PTSD at some point in their lives. Is someone you love crippled by PTSD? Explore how you can help and support them as they learn new ways of coping with their trauma.

Learn as much as you can

The more you learn about PTSD, the more you can help your loved one — and also yourself and other members of your family or circle of friends — cope with its symptoms. 

In addition to dealing with traumatic memories, your loved one may also struggle with “survivor’s guilt” if others in the same situation that traumatized them actually died.

Whether trauma is experienced or witnessed (such as seeing somebody killed), it triggers a fight-or-flight response in the brain. The chemicals your brain releases in a life-threatening or traumatic situation warn your body to stay alert to danger.

However, when you’re in a flight-or-fight situation, you can’t access other areas of your brain, such as the prefrontal cortex, which regulates high-level thinking. In other words, you’re stuck in the more primitive part of your brain, called the amygdala. 

When you suffer from PTSD, you either linger in that fight-or-flight state or are easily triggered to return there. A sight, a sound, a smell — even a dream — can trigger the amygdala and make you feel that you’re living through the trauma all over again.

Stay open … when they’re ready

Let your loved one know that you’re willing and able to listen actively and without judgment when they’re ready to share the details of the trauma they suffered. However, don’t pressure them to share.

Someone who has PTSD may not want to talk about the trauma that triggered it for fear of reliving those moments of horror once again. So be sure to let them know that if they’re not ready to talk, that’s OK, too.

Partner with them in new healthy habits

Regular exercise helps with all mental health disorders, including PTSD.  Offer to take daily walks together. Or even sign up for an exercise or dance class.

If you live with your loved one, make the move to throw out pro-inflammatory processed foods and replace them with whole foods, such as fresh vegetables, high-quality meats and other proteins, plus healthy oils.

When your new habits are something you do together, they feel less like you’re trying to “fix” your loved one. The time together can also build trust, which increases the chances that they open up to you and agree to see a specialist for treatment.

Spread the love

Don’t try to do it all yourself. Taking care of another person can be draining and puts you under tremendous stress. 

Increase your loved one’s social circle and support network by enlisting other friends and relatives to step in, too. Arrange for visits, take your loved one out to events, and try to keep them engaged. Isolation only increases the burden of PTSD and other mental health illnesses.

Accompany them on their journey to recovery

When your loved one seems open to treatment that could manage or resolve their PTSD, offer to go with them to their consultation. Your support can help them feel less alone in their journey. 

You can help them keep track of medications and remember therapy appointments. If they’re accepted into one of our PTSD clinical trials, all medications and supportive therapies are free.

Does your loved one have PTSD? Call us today at 601-685-3457, book an appointment online for a PTSD consultation, or send a message to our team.