post-traumatic stress

We wouldn't be happy to allow the trivialisation of most physical illnesses so we shouldn't accept the trivialisation of mental illnesses.

I agree that terms like PTSD should not be trivialised. I have a family member with PTSD and diagnosis takes many months.

I agree these terms are used easily but going back to what it used to be like, where most of these topics were taboo and folks suffered in silence.

Remember what it was like just trying to admit you were suffering from depression?

I’ll take a bit of overuse of these words any day.

And I’ll pay lots of attention to who is using them and why before I accept what they are saying. It’s just common sense.

Many medical conditions are trivialised by being used to describe inappropriate conditions or situations. I can't tell you how many times people have asked me 'what have you got to be depressed about?'. PTSD is a life changing condition for the sufferer and for the family, being clean and tidy is not at all like having such serious OCD that you can't leave the house/wash your hands raw and no, flu doesn't last for a few days, a bad cold maybe, but not flu. This overuse of terminology for serious medical conditions trivialises them for those unfortunate enough to suffer from them. Depression is not cured by buying a new hat.

I agree with you all. Some people have no idea. I have read about celebrities who say 'I had a nervous breakdown, it lasted three weeks'. All of the conditions mentioned by vampirequeen are indeed life threatening and debilitating. I have suffered/am suffering myself and it's not to be taken lightly.

There are indeed, degrees of everything, as illustrated by vampire's comments about the misuse of medical terms in common language. The comments highlighted in the OP confirm that PTSD is used far too easily, as are other medical terms, particularly depression and anxiety. Feeling a bit down after a period of stress, or a significant event isn't depression. Feeling uneasy and slightly anxious about an exam, or medical procedure is not anxiety in the medical sense. Reliving or ruminating on a difficult life experiences is very unlikely to be PTSD.

I hate the way OCD, PTSD, anxiety, depression, schizophrenia and a host of other mental health illnesses are used in common language. These are debilitating and even life threatening conditions.

I have lost count of the number of people who have told me to have 'happy thoughts', keep busy or tell me of when they were 'depressed' when really they've been down in the dumps for a few days. I'm sure this comes about because of this misuse of the medical terms in common language.

Iam64,

There are degrees of PTSD, the more serious the event, the more serious the degree.

So far as I recall from training courses, PTSD can result from a life threatening event.

PTSD is the resulting after-mass of any serious event in one’s life. Very real and very over-used and under appreciated by folks who don‘t know what they are talking about.

I 2nd that Judethepud2

Truly disgraceful trivialising of horrible psychological illness suffered by people who have experienced awful situations.

Trump is a dangerous idiot!

To use PTSD so easily, to describe the sense of unease and possibly loss that many Americans will feel in the current presidential campaign is just nonsense isn't it. Mind you, one of the candidates, Mr Trump, said recently that strong people dont get PTSD. He was talking about veterans.

It took a long time for PTS to be recognised as a emotional illness and now it is. People in war zones can have bad affected people and one only has to read accounts in WW1 to see its effect. Many words in our language are over used.

There are very specific conditions to be met before a diagnosis of ptsd can be made. Really unlikely reaction to a political situation would tick enough boxes. Yes, Ladygracie it is so unhelpful. In my view many medical conditions can be trivialised by careless inclusion in day to day conversation, from migraine through depression to ptsd. Not helpful to anyone experiencing a genuine and debilitating condition.

Sorry ninathenanna, I put that rather badly, of course PTSD is a genuine illness, but I feel the illness is being trivialised by, in my opinion, this sort of nonsense article!

PTSD is not to be taken so lightly as Synonymous and ninathenana have said,. Also used far too lightly are OCD and Depression. .

Tizliz I would say that it is an abused concept to equate PTSD to something so puerile. Just goes to show that they clearly have no notion of just how awful PTSD actually is.

LadyGracie sorry what "nonsense" do you mean ?
Are you saying PTSD is not a real illness? Apologies if I've misunderstood you.

I couldn't agree more Tizliz PTSD destroys lives and seriously affects those close to the sufferer. It's not to be taken lightly

Do you not think the whole world is getting carried away with all this nonsense?