The Physical Symptoms of PTSD

PTSD not only affects us mentally; it can also cause chronic pain conditions. This Teen Vogue article is about people who experience trauma-induced chronic pain and the medical providers who care for them.

Experiences of trauma can change the brain and the nervous system. This can contribute to the development of stress-related conditions that include migraines, chronic pain, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and fibromyalgia. Not everyone who has these conditions has a history of trauma. For those who do, it is important to address the mental, emotional, and physical effects. Patients with chronic pain conditions that are related to trauma benefit from both therapy and physical treatment.

Physical symptoms of trauma may not appear until years after the event. Vulvovaginal pain, for example, can result from sexual trauma and violence. Like other conditions, people with vaginismus benefit from therapy and medical treatment that can address the physical symptoms. For vaginismus, this entails the use of dilators.

She told me that a lot of people who are raped end up developing PTSD and sometimes it happens years after the assault… But no one ever told me that I might end up having physical health problems, too.

SOURCE: Teen Vogue • AUTHOR: Caitlin Flynn • LAST UPDATED: August 19, 2020