Acute Stress Disorder Introduction & Symptoms

Conditions & Diseases: Psychological & Mental Health

Acute Stress Disorder

Acute Stress Disorder Introduction and Symptoms

Acute stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that develops in relation to a traumatic event. It is triggered by exposure to a extreme traumatic event or stressor and it lasts between 2 days (the minimum limit) and 4 weeks (the maximum limit). (After 4 weeks, it can become Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder)

Acute stress disorder is a relatively new diagnostic category that began in 1994 to differentiate short-term responses to trauma from long-lasting symptoms characteristic for post-traumatic stress disorder. Post-traumatic stress disorder is another anxiety disorder that develops as the result to a traumatic exposure.

Individuals that develop acute stress disorder experience at least three of the following symptoms during or right after the traumatic experience:

A subjective sense of numbing, detachment, or absence of emotional responsiveness.
A reduction in awareness of their surroundings.
Derealization (an alteration in the perception or experience of the external world which seems strange and unreal).
Depersonalization (an alteration in the perception or experience of the self where the person feels detached from his or her own mental processes or body).
Dissociative amnesia (condition where the individual blocks out information associated with the stressful or traumatic event).

Individuals affected by acute stress disorder also display several other symptoms specific to this disorder.

Recurrent re-experiences of the event. Individuals with acute stress disorder repeatedly re-experience the trauma through recurrent recollections of the event through images, thoughts, dreams, illusions, flashbacks, or dissociative states (state when the individual relives the traumatic event and behaves as the event is happening at that moment). These recurrent recollections of the traumatic event are accompanied by intense anxiety symptoms, psychological distress, and physiological reactivity.

Avoidance behavior. Individuals with acute stress disorder deliberately avoid reminders of the traumatic event which include: thoughts, feelings, conversations, activities, situations, and even people that are connected to the event.

Hyperarousal and anxiety. Individuals with acute stress disorder display signs of hyperarousal and anxiety when they encounter stimuli reminders of the trauma. Signs of hyperarousal can include: sleep difficulties, irritability, hypervigilance, poor concentration and difficulties completing tasks, exaggerated startled response, and motor restlessness.

Impaired life functions. Individuals with acute stress disorder can experience reduced emotional responsiveness and difficulties feeling pleasure during activities that used to be enjoyable. They can also experience guilt of pursuing life tasks.

In order for an acute stress disorder diagnosis to be established, these symptoms have to be severe and interfere with the individual's normal daily functioning due to marked distress.

Due to the fact that acute stress disorder is a recent diagnostic category, the research on this subject is in the early stages and information is lacking. The prevalence of this condition in the general population is not known, but a few studies suggest that it rates between 14 to 33 percent among individuals exposed to severe trauma such as motor vehicle accidents, violent assault, or a bystander at a mass shooting.

Acute stress disorder should not be confused with post-traumatic stress disorder even if their symptoms are extremely similar and overlap. The difference between these two anxiety disorders lays in the time criteria. Acute stress disorder should be considered only when the trauma related symptoms last between 2 days and 4 weeks causing significant distress and impairment in different areas of the individual's life. When the symptoms are prolonged over the one month limit, a post-traumatic stress disorder diagnosis might be taken in consideration.

Article by Alina Morrow
MS Psychology
Medical Writer
OmniMedicalSearch.com