Misdiagnosing ptsd means unnessecary suffering

| PTSD can not be treated by antidepressants.

by Anna Westerberg

You would not be completely out there for believing that patients with traumatic experiences, such as warfare and torture, followed by symptoms of insomnia, nightmares and flashbacks, should be a clear case of possible post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Surprisingly, this is not always the case.

Instead of being given the correct diagnose of PTSD, and with that, a chance to find the right treatment, patients are being diagnosed with depression and put on antidepressants. The result is years of unnecessary suffering from the symptoms of PTSD, for which antidepressants don’t help.

Of course the human factor is playing its role here. But if health professionals would be actively looking for PTSD in their patients, at the very least in the patients clearly having gone through trauma, a lot of misdiagnosing could be avoided.

Brighton-based Refugee Radio are supporting refugees and asylum seekers seeking help in the UK. They are meeting people with obvious signs of torture, such as missing fingernails, who are struggling to process their experiences, and are suffering from various symptoms connected to PTSD. Refugee Radio, among other things, helps the refugees contact a GP for medical treatment. Yet, they are not being diagnosed, as the medical staff they meet are not looking for PTSD, but send them home with happy pills.

Also, soldiers are not the only ones vulnerable to trauma. Hollywood is partially to blame for this huge misconception. Anyone, and I mean anyone, could be exposed to trauma.

A new, possibly ground breaking, study might help in preventing patients from going undiagnosed, by recognising the earliest signs of PTSD. This could mean a huge difference for individuals but also for us as a society. But unless health professionals look at the results of the study and implement them, it won’t make a difference at all.

Follow Anna Westerberg @Anna__Wester on Twitter

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