How to Recognize Acute Stress Disorder

Conditions for developing acute stress disorder stem from experiencing a traumatic event. The trauma comes about when a person witnesses death, physical harm, violence or severe injury. The person reacts to the trauma by feeling helpless, fearful or horrified to the point of being unable to function normally. In World War I, the battlefield's death and horror caused many soldiers to experience "shell shock," otherwise known as acute stress disorder.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Look for depersonalization from oneself with numbing and lack of emotional attachment.
2. Observe amnesia regarding the traumatic event. A person might remember some things or nothing at all from the debilitating experience while avoiding anything that reminds them of the troubled moment.
3. See if the person experiences detachment from surroundings.
4. Notice changes in waking and sleeping patterns with difficulty doing either one in a normal fashion.
5. Inquire if the person re-experiences the event through dreams, visual images and flashbacks.
6. Monitor increases in anxiety, mood swings, lack of concentration and restlessness.
7. Examine problems involving social contact, job performance and other impairments while doing routine tasks.

Tips & Warnings

• Contact a doctor when any of the symptoms appear, especially after a traumatic experience for proper diagnosis.
• Accute stress disorder develops within a month of the traumatic experience and doctors look for the symptoms to last between 2 days to a month. When the disorder lasts longer than a month the diagnosis changes to post-traumatic stress disorder.
• Treatment typically involves antidepressants and psychotherapy with best results when diagnosed early.