Trauma and Its Consequences for the Body and Mind

Abstract

This chapter presents the definition and description of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is characterized by the presence of three distinct, but co-occurring, symptom clusters: re-experiencing symptoms; avoidance symptoms; and hyperarousal symptoms. The impairment from PTSD is amplified by poor coping strategies, substance abuse, co-occurring mood and anxiety disorders, lack of social support, and the accelerated development of stress-related medical conditions. The chapter presents the psychoanalytic models of trauma. The first is based on Freud's psychoeconomic model, and the second on Ferenczi's object relations psychological approach. After the review of psychoanalytic concepts of trauma, the chapter turns to some clinical problems in the treatment of traumatized patients and some problems in the psychoanalytic treatment of traumatized patients. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)