Can Ptsd Intensify If Left Untreated?

[caligirl03]

Just what the title states. ^^

 

[Friday]

Yes.

It will intensify during treatment, however. Which is one reason why treatment is often postponed. First, get stable, then get treatment.

It's not like straight up anxiety, or depression, or crisis... (Or marriage counseling, or any other kind of feel better therapy)... Where treatment provides immediate benefit & relief of symptoms & changing behaviors. Instead, trauma therapy will make things much much worse for a time. So waiting to enter into treatment until one's life is stable enough to withstand things getting worse? Is really necessary. When people are doing so badly that they're in crisis? That's not about treating PTSD, which will have to happen later, but about treating the immediate crisis at hand.

PTSD can also de escalate without treatment. Particularly as people learn coping mechanisms & stress management & their lives are getting more stable & less stressful.

So in many ways it's a bit of a Catch22.

PTSD can intensify without treatment.
PTSD will intensify with treatment.
PTSD can deescalate without treatment.

 

[Seasounds]

A couple of questions and a few thoughts.

Left untreated, by whom?
What are you defining treatment as?

Personal experience:
-Just by removing myself from a triggering situations, my PTSD aggravations faded over time. I did fine while I lived a relatively isolated life.

-When I entered the work force and enfered relationships, I could not remove myself completely from triggers, and the triggers were more persistant, and more frequent. My PTSD got worse. Then I sought professional help.

-Treatment sometimes helped, sometimes aggravated; attuned, relational therapy helps, EMDR is practically deadly for me. Some therapists weren't skilled enough to work with me.

Working knowledge of PTSD:
I think it really depends on the person, the situation, the degree of aggravation, and the person's trauma history.

 

[EveHarrington]

Yes, most definitely.

And for those with more severe forms of the disorder, I almost think that it's guaranteed.

 

[lostforgottensoul]

Yes, plus you could have comorbilty. Therefore way more complex and a lot more to intensify.

Treatment looks different for everyone though.

 

[Sideways]

"Can" it intensify if left untreated? Yes, that is a possibility.
Ptsd can also resolve itself naturally over time. There is no definitive course that the illness will follow.

Personally, I think if your symptoms are distressing you and interfering with your function, it makes sense to seek support. But depending on the individual and their circumstances, "support" can be all sorts of different things. For example, some people find more relief from yoga than from a more traditional 'therapist'. "Treating" your ptsd could come in many different forms.