When you go through a traumatic event, you naturally use the coping skills you have at that time, to deal with your stress. Meanwhile, your brain does its own work as part of our innate “fight or flight” response. But trauma leaves unseen impacts on us, depending on how you feel during the events and immediately thereafter. For some, acute stress disorder (ASD) brings a range of difficult symptoms. Acute stress disorder looks similar to post-traumatic stress disorder. But unlike PTSD, ASD reduces in severity over time. Symptoms typically only last three days to a month, whereas PTSD lingers for years when untreated. Like many other mental health disorders, ASD makes daily life more complex. For many people, this complexity leads to self-medication through substance abuse, eating disorders and adaptation of other negative coping mechanisms. But there is hope for overcoming your acute stress disorder, the root trauma and resulting conditions. This recovery takes place in the acute stress disorder treatment center of The Ranch, where you receive dual diagnosis treatment with an anxiety therapy program.
Causes and Risks of Acute Stress Disorder
Experiencing traumatic events, whether firsthand or as a witness, causes acute stress disorder. The events make you feel fear, helplessness or horror. ASD possibly occurs when you experience death, threat of death, serious injury to yourself or others, or the threat of physical assault. Between six and 33 percent of people going through trauma develop ASD, as reported by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Suffering ASD necessitates treatment through an acute stress disorder treatment center. Anyone experiencing a traumatic event can develop ASD. You are more at risk if you have had prior trauma, prior ASD or PTSD, a history of mental problems or history of dissociative symptoms as part of trauma.
Symptoms of ASD
ASD causes a collection of symptoms, including dissociative symptoms, re-experiencing the event, avoidance and anxiety. Dissociative symptoms include feeling detached, numb or less aware of your surroundings. You may have a type of amnesia that makes remembering the events difficult. Other symptoms include having thoughts or emotions that seem like they do not belong to you or feeling like your environment is strange or unreal. Re-experiencing occurs when you suffer flashbacks, thoughts, nightmares, recurring visions or illusions of the traumatic event. You feel like you relive the trauma over and over, feeling distressed when something triggers you to remember it. Because of these other symptoms, you likely avoid triggering memories of the trauma. This avoidance includes people, places, things, conversations, activities, feelings and thoughts. You also feel a range of anxious feelings with increased arousal. These symptoms include:
- Sleeplessness and irritability
- Inability to complete tasks
- Difficulty concentrating
- Inability to sit still or stop moving
- Tension or being “on guard”
- Easily startled
- Feeling distressed
How is acute stress diagnosed and treated?
To understand whether you possibly suffer acute stress disorder with or without addiction or an eating disorder, talk to a counselor at an acute stress disorder treatment center. This counselor guides you to the right resources for your particular needs. You also learn about treatment for ASD and a number of other dual diagnosis conditions at The Ranch in Pennsylvania and Tennessee. A doctor diagnoses your mental health condition, such as for ASD. He asks you about your trauma, the event and resulting symptoms. Other issues sometimes cause similar symptoms, such as medication side effects, drug abuse, health problems and other psychiatric disorders. But at The Ranch, you can rest assured you will receive the diagnosis and treatment you need for your conditions. Dual diagnosis treatment for ASD at The Ranch includes:
- Medical drug detox
- Inpatient and outpatient programs
- 12 step support groups
- Acupuncture and craniosacral therapy
- Anger management, family therapy and couples counseling
- CBT, DBT, EMDR and cognitive processing therapy
- Equine-assisted and art therapy
With treatment centers in both Tennessee and Pennsylvania, The Ranch provides the acute stress disorder recovery you seek for the life you deserve. Call The Ranch now at 1.844.876.7680 and talk to a caring counselor about putting your trauma symptoms and other problems behind you.
