If you’re a teenager who has experienced a traumatic event, you’re probably experiencing a whole lot of emotions. These might range from anxiety and fear to anger and guilt. Alongside these emotions, you may be struggling with sleep, nightmares and feeling disconnected from others. Many people recover in a few weeks on their own or with the help of friends and family, but some people might have these reactions for a long time, and they can develop into posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is important to get help for your symptoms as early as possible.
Any event that involves actual or threat of death, serious injury, or sexual violence can be traumatic. They might have seen someone die, or thought that they, or someone else, was going to die. Or they might have learnt that a friend or family member was seriously injured, or died unexpectedly. The trauma could be something that happened once, or something that keeps on happening over and over again, for weeks, months, or even years.
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Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a set of reactions that can develop in some people after they have been through a traumatic event.
There are four main types of problems that you may experience if you have PTSD.
There are lots of people who you can get help from. However, at first you should speak to your parents, a teacher or another trusted adult about what’s going on. They can then help you to find the right person to see.
This might be:
There are lots of people who you can get help from. However, at first you should speak to your parents, a teacher or another trusted adult about what’s going on. They can then help you to find the right person to see.
This might be:
If you see a counsellor, you may be offered what is known as ‘talking therapy’. There are different types of talking therapies, but for PTSD the one that works best is trauma-focussed cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT). TF-CBT helps you to talk about your memories, thoughts and feelings and learn ways to manage them.
Step 1:
Tell your mum, dad, teacher or a trusted adult about what is going on (take this brochure with you to help you explain it to them).
Step 2:
Make an appointment with your doctor (it is best to take your parents or a trusted adult with you). Tell the doctor about what you’re going through. They’ll discuss things that you can do to feel better, and perhaps arrange for you to see a specialist counsellor.
Step 3:
Make an appointment to see the counsellor
PTSD is a bit like never tidying your room. As time goes by, the floor, the furniture, and eventually even your bed, get covered in junk; you can’t even recognise them anymore and you don’t want to spend time in your room. So you have to make time to sort through all the junk, decide what to throw away and what to keep, and find a safe place to put the things that you don’t want to get rid of.
Once you have done this your room becomes a nice place to be again, and somewhere where you can feel safe, hang out and sleep soundly. If you have PTSD, going to see a counsellor is just like cleaning up your room A counsellor can help you sort through the ‘junk’ (memories, feelings and thoughts) that you have collected about the trauma, so that you can feel safe and secure again, and be free to do the things you used to like doing.
You call 1800 55 1800 or visit www.kidshelp.com.au for confidential counselling.
You can read through or download this brochure for more information on PTSD, how to cope and who to reach out for more help, and for useful strategies and exercises you can use to help yourself feel better.
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