While we hear accounts of more than 4000 US soldiers killed in the Iraq war to date, the number of returning veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) numbers in the tens of thousands. A result of the constant conflict, anxiety, and daily threats of death PTSD has been referred to in many ways: Shell shock, combat fatigue, and battle fatigue. Post-Vietnam syndrome is the expression that was used as a result of the Vietnam conflict.
There are well-defined characteristics of PTSD. The major problem relates to unremitting flashbacks with accompanying senses of distress and physical unease. Very few people are able to manage these recurring symptoms.
Imagine having to replay day after day terrifying and disturbing scenes. Some people don't realise that they have PTSD until they start to have nightmares at night and cannot sleep and feel refresh the next day. When they go to work feeling tired and irritable, their concentration is negatively affected and their work productivity is interfered with dramatically.
The constant worries mean that relationships suffer as the person experiencing PTSD pulls away from loved ones. Some suffer guilt that they returned from the war - and that their comrades did not. Emotions are volatile, some people becoming very edgy and short-tempered.
We know that when our emotionality is high our capacity to reason and be logical is significantly reduced. So when we want to be able to attend to a complex problem in the workplace, we find that we do not have the attentional resources that we need. These problems with concentration create a secondary disorder, in many cases, feelings of guilt about not being able to carry an effective load.
It is true that people are more important than productivity in the workplace but the reality is that something around 8% of people in the US report that they experience PTSD. They also report that the stress disorder interferes significantly with their productivity. And interestingly PTSD applies equally across gender and racial lines.
Fortunately, for most of us, we do not experience this level of stress, though if you are stressed at the moment many of these symptoms will probably apply to you. The question that arises relates to the degree and continuity of the stressors that are causing us to feel tense and unhappy. How long do they last? Will they end? What can be done to overcome these recurrent worries?
We have to accept in our fast society that being tense and anxious is a normal part of life. We all have complex lives that present us with daily challenges to our emotional equilibrium. The real issue is to be able to manage stress and tension so that we do not become tense and irritable and lose the social support from our loved ones that are so central in having a stable and happy life.
Managing stress is one of the most important things we need to learn in a modern complex life. Understanding tension, anxiety, stressors and a range of emotional pressures gives us the tools to be able to unlock and deal with stress disorders. And when we have sound information and know effective stress management strategies we can maintain a steady and stable personality and keep the support of our loved ones.
The best way to start to manage and reduce stress is to gain as much information as possible about this syndrome. Knowing the stressors and how to deal with them is an essential first step - whether it is a serious psychological condition like PTSD - or a less debilitating but still worrisome disorder - elevated stress. Once you know you enemy - then you know how to manage stress and overcome the worry and anxiety.
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