Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is marked by increased stress and anxiety following exposure to a traumatic or stressful event.
Traumatic or stressful events may include being a witness to or being involved in a violent accident or crime, military combat, or assault, being kidnapped, being involved in a natural disaster, being diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, or experiencing systematic physical or sexual abuse.
The person reacts to the experience with fear and helplessness, persistently relives the event, and tries to avoid being reminded of it. The event may be relived in dreams and waking thoughts (flashbacks) (Kaplan and Sadock’s Synopsis of Psychiatry, 2015).