Stress is a common thing that many people experience. However, not all types of stress are experienced by many people, one of which is acute stress. What is acute stress? Find out more about acute stress and its symptoms.
When viewed from the trigger, acute stress resembles Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). What is acute stress and how does it differ from PTSD? Check out the full information in this article.
Table of Contents
Definition of Acute Stress
Acute Stress Disorder (ASD) or acute stress is a mental shock that is triggered by a traumatic situation, such as a natural disaster, accident or sexual harassment. This shock forms a powerful, even destructive emotional response anxiety disorders. However, in contrast to PTSD, acute stress does not cause it panic attacks when remembering the traumatic situation.
Characteristics of Acute Stress
Based on its characteristics, many consider acute stress to be the same as PTSD, namely:
- Replaying events: Past memories, negative imaginations, nightmares, and negative emotional responses to memories of traumatic events.
- Avoidance: Staying away from anything associated with the traumatic event, such as locations, people, conversations, feelings, thoughts, loss of interest, numbness, or emotions.
- Hyperarousal: panic attacks, anxiety attacksinsomnia, emotional instability, unfocused, restless.
Acute stress is characterized by a very pronounced dissociative effect. Dissociation is a partial or complete loss of consciousness. Its features are short-term amnesia (inability to partially remember the traumatic situation) and self-denial (not related to or not experiencing the traumatic situation).
Acute stress will show signs some time after the traumatic situation, but time is short. Signs of acute stress persist 3 days after the traumatic situation, but resolve after 4 weeks.
In some cases, acute stress can become a complication, such as PTSD. However, not all acute stress becomes a complication. This is because most people with PTSD have no previous history of acute stress.
However, in contrast to PTSD, acute stress does not show characteristics, such as destructive behavior, negative thinking, easy to give up, lack of enthusiasm to continue life, lack of motivation to achieve something, and avoid contact with other people.
Treatment of Acute Stress
To deal with acute stress, patients need to undergo counseling with a psychologist and take antidepressants given for a short time. In addition, people with acute stress are encouraged to undergo relaxation techniques, such as meditation, yoga and aromatherapy. Make sure you consult a psychologist regularly so that acute stress management is more effective.
Acute Stress Prevention
To speed up healing from acute stress, here are the steps you can apply:
- Take the time to listen to the patient’s complaints with empathy. Do not force the sufferer to speak if they are not ready to tell.
- Immediately contact a doctor or psychiatrist if the sufferer has a desire or plans to commit suicide.
Acute stress needs to be treated immediately. To be more optimal, support from family or friends is needed so that people with acute stress can recover quickly. If not treated immediately, acute stress can lead to dangerous mental complications, such as major depression, eating disorders, alcohol and drug abuse, and anxiety disorders chronic.
