Whatever the source of the traumatic stress, victims with posttraumatic stress disorder have an increased risk of developing major psychological problems such as depression, phobias, chronic pain syndrome, learning disorders, alterations in consciousness, memory changes, impaired concentration, sleep disturbances, and substance abuse. The psychological symptoms of PTSD, like those of many other mental illnesses, almost certainly have physiological roots. Studies indicate that people with PTSD show deficits in short-term memory and in learning. Researchers compared the function of short-term memory in patients with PTSD to people who did not suffer from this disorder. Posttraumatic stress symptoms and its affects can interfere with academic performance.
Preschoolers show slight regression in speech and cognitive abilities.
Latency-age children show agressive behavior and often miss social cues which can lead to alienation. Finally, PTSD is evaluated by the individual having some signs of mental illness such as, depression, anxiety, cognitive disorders, etc., and having them be accompanied by numbing, hyperarousal, nightmares, fixation on the trauma, and violent outbursts of temper. Click here to see my annotated bibliography. Click here to return to the list of other students' home pages.