Do You Have Post-traumatic Stress Disorder?

1. Have you been exposed to a traumatic event in which both of the following statements are true?
   • you experienced or witnessed an event that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, to yourself or to others
   • your response was one of fear, helplessness, or horror
2. Are you "re-experiencing" the traumatic event in one or more of the following ways?
   • recurrent and intrusive recollections of the event, which may include thoughts or images
   • recurrent and distressing dreams about the event
   • feeling as if the event is recurring "flashbacks"
   • intense distress when confronted with reminders of the event
3. Are you avoiding things associated with the traumatic event?
   • efforts to avoid thoughts or feelings associated with the trauma
   • efforts to avoid people, activities, places associated with the trauma
   • inability to remember certain aspects of the trauma
4. Do you feel "jumpy" or irritable? Are you having trouble sleeping?
5. Are you having problems concentrating?

If you answered yes to each of the above questions, and if the symptoms have lasted a month or more following the trauma, and these symptoms are adversely affecting your functioning, you may have post-traumatic stress disorder.