How Is PTSD Measured? – Know The Possible Ways to Assess It
It is hard to differentiate depression after trauma is normal or a disorder. It is because a person who has gone through trauma may become upset, anxious, and depressed, cannot handle the responsibilities, and may develop anxiety disorders like PTSD. PTSD is overwhelming as it involves several steps.
At a reputed treatment center like AMFM (A Mission for Michael), you can find an experienced therapist for PTSD assessment at reasonable prices. They provide personalized treatment programs for their clients to meet their physical, behavioral, and mental needs.
How to measure PTSD?
Some people may develop PTSD symptoms a few weeks or months after a trauma, while others notice the signs after years. Generally, there are 4 kinds of symptoms that help to evaluate PTSD, such as avoidance, negative thoughts and feelings, and arousal. Also, there are many advanced instruments to diagnose and assess PTSD.
Experts use 2 categories to evaluate the PTSD symptoms, they are:
- Self-report questionnaires
- Structured clinical interviews
This assessment may take 30 minutes to several hours and it is done by a professional mental healthcare provider.
About PTSD screening
Those who have gone through a traumatic event need to take up a screen to make sure that they have PTSD or not. This process involves a list of questionnaires, which helps to ensure whether the person requires further assessment.
Overview of assessments
PTSD (National Center for PTSD) provides a list of assessments that help to measure the exposure of trauma and PTSD. Also, it helps to find the information related to interviews, scales, and the importance of each. You can only find the information, not the assessments.
About psychiatric rating scales
Only a few assessments are free, while you have to purchase some assessments to measure the symptoms of PTSD, mostly, structured clinical interviews, which are used by the clinicians. The following is a list of a few common assessments that help to evaluate your PTSD symptoms.
Trauma Symptom Check-list 40 – It is not used for self-test, only professionals will use it. This research measure evaluates the symptoms in adults related to adult or child traumatic events.
SCID PTSD Module – This structure Clinical Interview is used by clinicians or professionals. It is a semi structured interview. In this module, questions related to a single traumatic event are asked.
CAPS – It is a 30-item, gold-standard structured interview used by the clinicians and professionals
M-PTSD – It is a 35 item report that can be used by the people themselves. It helps to assess PTSD in the veteran population
MPSS-SR-modified PTSD symptom scale – It is a 17-item self-report. It helps to assess the 17-DSM PTSD symptoms
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – 2 (MMPI-2-trauma-spec.subscales) Along with the diagnosis of PTSD symptoms it also helps to find the severity of symptoms
PTSD is not a common condition. It affects physical and mental health and impacts negatively on your relationships. So, you need to get the treatment for PTSD as soon as possible once you diagnose it.
Many treatment centers in Orange County, California, U.S., provide the latest equipment to assess PTSD. From those, choose the best center and book your appointment today to assess and treat PTSD symptoms before they worsen.