Include Complex PTSD in the APA DSM

Make this happen!

This condition is debilitating and gets passed on from one generation to the next while left untreated or ineffectively treated, because the professionals simply are unaware of this condition. Children of parents who have this condition, by the nature of this condition, are at major risk of developing it themselves. I believe it is the root cause of a majority of the mental health struggles in adults. It is very common (see https://www.porticonetwork.ca/web/childhood-trauma-toolkit/developmental-trauma/what-is-developmental-trauma) and people are suffering unnecessarily. This needs to be treated so future generations are protected from this debilitating condition. Without a definition and recognition and acknowledgment of the existence of this condition, it is not possible to work towards resolving the epidemic of relational trauma.

6 years ago Featured

As someone who works with survivors of human trafficking, having a separate CPTSD diagnosis would help us get appropriate services for our survivors and the proper recognition of what they are experiencing.

CPSTD is the cause of many of societies issues (addiction, violence)

I hope this helps! It is much needed!

CPTSD needs to be recognized for treatment and support of sufferers.

CPTSD's lack of inclusion in the DSM-V often means that folks get misdiagnosed with several not-quite-right disorders, including Borderline Personality Disorder. The associated stigma can limit further access to appropriate supports. Further, there are still far too many mental health professionals who are completely unaware of CPTSD's existence due to its omission in the DSM.

There's more than enough study and need for c-PTSD to be included in the DSM. Needs such as medical-legal, insurance, LTD, proper diagnosis and doctor's notes/letters. Please include it.

Add it in! It's different! It's good to be precise!

I strongly agreee that complex ptsd should be considered. It’s presentation, aetiology and treatment are considerably different to ptsd and it’s diagnosis should be treated as such

The trauma has to stop before you can start to heal. BUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE TRAUMA IS ONGOING. HOW DO YOU START TO HEAL?

My life has been decimated by this illness that no mental health care professionals in my region are even aware of.

Cptsd survivor and retired psychotherapist having worked w/survivors of childhood sexual abuse for 35 years. While most psychotherapists may understand PTSD, CPTSD is still largely unknown by the professional community. It isn't till I read Pete Walker's "CPTSD..." book that I realized this was my diagnosis rather than PTSD. CPTSD is different from PTSD, the former resulting from multiple traumas over a long period of time. The triggering to PTSD is one flashback, while for CPTSD, the trigger brings the survivor back on an emotional/psychological age when the trauma took place. Sometimes, it's not even the abuse/trauma itself, but what the brain had to do in order to survive, basically focusing on something else, i.e., smell, a random object, certain noises, etc. For the longest time, I didn't understand why I never had flashbacks of incidents, but mainly the feelings and the chemical reactions to those feelings at a certain time in my life.

Thank you

Just as people who suffered in battle have different neurological responses to stimuli, so too do people who have survive chronic abuse from which they felt unable to escape.

I think people who suffer from this should get the correct diagnosis and thereby the right treatment from their condition.

I was diagnosed a couple of years ago and it was annoying seeing F43.1 PTSD knowing I’d been told it was C-PTSD

It is so important the diagnosis is more widely recognised so treatment can become available

This diagnosis is important for clarity, treatment, and health insurance coverage.

This is relevant not only for Americans but for Europe, too, as European authorities tend to take the same criterias as the American!