Has anyone ever experienced Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in relation to adoption?

Marsha R

I have known 2 men who had PTSD from serving in Vietnam. One was my ex boyfriends' dad who would wake up and night screaming and crying and his two little kids would have to witness this and be awoken on school nights because of their dads extreme terror episodes. I think it eventually led to his drinking problem and his divorce later on. The other was my best friends father. She would have to come stay with me during the times when her dad would really go off, because he would go into these rages and really hurt them, but he wasn't aware of what he was doing. He had severe flashbacks a lot, which was so sad because he was the sweetest man when he wasn't experiencing them. Both of the men I knew who had it had their entire families and lives affected by it, and suffered a great deal.
I don't know that I have PTSD from my adoption, though I certainly can see how other adoptees could. I know I do have issues, mostly attachment and abandonment issues, but I would NEVER make light of something as serious as PTSD and pretend I had it when I do not, just as I would never fake cancer or infertility for attention or sympathy. Anyone who really is experiencing PTSD has my deepest sympathy, whether it be because of war, losing a parent or child to adoption, being raped, abused, suffering neglect, surviving a horrible accident or uhhh having someone express opinions that are different than yours on an online question and answer forum.

Joy M

Well my adoptive father had PTSD from Vietnam. It is very hard to be around people with PTSD when they are upset.

It is very sad, and not something I take lightly or find funny.

concerned

I've got symptoms of it. Not enough now to meet the full criteria--thank goodness--most of it has settled down.

PTSD is tricky as a psychological diagnosis. The DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for mental disorders) actually specifies that in order to be diagnosed PTSD, the person must have witnessed or experienced a physically threatening incident. So technically, even if a person meets the criteria for PTSD in terms of symptoms, if the CAUSE was not a physically endangering situation, that person doesn't qualify for the diagnosis.

That being said, there's some discussion about changing those criteria.... as it's pretty obvious that people can get PTSD without it stemming from a life-threatening situation.

Anyway... I've never been officially diagnosed. This summer at a psychiatrist appointment the psychiatrist did say, though, that I had symptoms of it. Which, at that point, didn't surprise me. It took me a looooong time to recognize it, but about a year ago it finally dawned on me that post-relinquishment, there was a period of time in which I had all the qualifying symptoms. By the time of that psychiatrist appointment this summer, most of the symptoms were in remission (gone), but there will still a few lingering ones. So... I don't know that I was EVER diagnosed (or could have been, based on DSM criteria) as officially having full-blown PTSD, but I HAVE officially been told I've got symptoms.

And yes... it all stems from relinquishment. The day I signed the termination of rights papers, I felt very very trapped. And betrayed.

My symptoms have included:

Nightmares
Physical reactions to certain stimuli reminding me of placement day
Feeling estranged and detached from other people
Feeling hopeless
Feeling I didn't have a future
Decreased interest in activities
Restricted range of affect (inability to feel a full range of emotions)
Difficulty falling asleep
Difficulty concentrating
Inability to remember signing the termination of rights papers

Here's the DSM-IV criteria:

DSM-IV:

309.81 DSM-IV Criteria for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

A. The person has been exposed to a traumatic event in which both of the following have been present:

(1) the person experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others (2) the person's response involved intense fear, helplessness, or horror. Note: In children, this may be expressed instead by disorganized or agitated behavior.

B. The traumatic event is persistently re-experienced in one (or more) of the following ways:

(1) recurrent and intrusive distressing recollections of the event, including images, thoughts, or perceptions. Note: In young children, repetitive play may occur in which themes or aspects of the trauma are expressed.

(2) recurrent distressing dreams of the event. Note: In children, there may be frightening dreams without recognizable content.

(3) acting or feeling as if the traumatic event were recurring (includes a sense of reliving the experience, illusions, hallucinations, and dissociative flashback episodes, including those that occur upon awakening or when intoxicated). Note: In young children, trauma-specific reenactment may occur.

(4) intense psychological distress at exposure to internal or external cues that symbolize or resemble an aspect of the traumatic event.

(5) physiological reactivity on exposure to internal or external cues that symbolize or resemble an aspect of the traumatic event.

C. Persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma and numbing of general responsiveness (not present before the trauma), as indicated by three (or more) of the following:

(1) efforts to avoid thoughts, feelings, or conversations associated with the trauma

(2) efforts to avoid activities, places, or people that arouse recollections of the trauma

(3) inability to recall an important aspect of the trauma

(4) markedly diminished interest or participation in significant activities

(5) feeling of detachment or estrangement from others

(6) restricted range of affect (e.g., unable to have loving feelings)

(7) sense of a foreshortened future (e.g., does not expect to have a career, marriage, children, or a normal life span)

D. Persistent symptoms of increased arousal (not present before the trauma), as indicated by two (or more) of the following:

(1) difficulty falling or staying asleep
(2) irritability or outbursts of anger
(3) difficulty concentrating
(4) hypervigilance
(5) exaggerated startle response

E. Duration of the disturbance (symptoms in Criteria B, C, and D) is more than one month.

F. The disturbance causes clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.

Specify if:
Acute: if duration of symptoms is less than 3 months
Chronic: if duration of symptoms is 3 months or more

Specify if:
With Delayed Onset: if onset of symptoms is at least 6 months after the stressor

Working on a Full House

Both of my daughters suffer from PTSD as a result of their lives before we adopted them. It certainly has made things interesting sometimes.

I am not sure if that is what you are looking for, but I hope it helps. Feel free to e-mail me if you think I can provide additional information.

sunny

I don't think I had PTSD, but I do think I was clinically depressed as an adopted child.

I truly felt like an actress in a play who was cast in the wrong part. I'm happier as an adult who has become ME.

My (natural) mother and I believe that she suffers from PTSD. She tried to commit suicide after my relinquishment, and was hospitalized.

She began smoking in this institution, and continued for 30 years as a way to cope with the separation from her child, and pretending that it was not an issue. She now suffers from COPD, too.

Yes, adoption IS a miracle!

Possum

I don't know about me. I've never had anything diagnosed.
I have suffered from depressive episodes many times throughout me life - which my a-sister told me only a few months ago. (she is 14 years older than I - so can remember much more about me than I can)
I do know personally two women who have relinquished children to adoption that have suffered badly from PTSD. Both were very badly treated (in the 50's and 60's) when they were pregnant - and told that they had no other option than to sign their children away. (one even had to scream her way through labor with NO help at all in a tiny room - while she screamed for a doctor - just horrible stuff)
Both also never spoke about their lost babies to anyone - they were told to go home and forget it ever happened - and as we know - any psychologist would tell you that keeping things locked inside is not a good thing to do.

The first mother - goes to my support group here in AUS. She was visiting her new grandson in the states (from her kept son) and on the flight home to AUS - she collapsed and had a complete break-down.
The second mother - is my own mother. She had a similar reaction to having her two young grandsons moved away from her - due to her son's divorce. She is currently going through this - and I'm hoping she'll get proper support.

In both cases - the young children were the trigger - which turned their lives into a complete spin.
This is very serious stuff.
It needs to be discussed openly - and it needs to be treated appropriately.

Adoptionissadnsick

yes - (and it's been diagnosed by 3 professionals, although 2 of them recognized I had symptoms of PTSD, but didn't *know to* connect it to adoption.)

Emma523

I have PTSD but not related directly to adoption. More with my extended adopted family who are very verbally abusive and have definitly been physically threatening.
I have all of these:
Nightmares
Physical reactions to any event that reminds me of any of the events.
Feeling estranged and detached from other people
Feeling hopeless
Decreased interest in activities
Difficulty falling asleep
Difficulty concentrating

a healing adoptee

No, i don't think so. I just felt some sadness and anger at my birth mother for awhile.

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: