Open the psychological "blind box"! Be alert to these early "signs" of acute stress disorder (ASD)

Acute stress disorder (ASD) refers to a short-term psychological abnormality that occurs within minutes or hours after suffering from acute and severe psychosocial stressors. The clinical symptoms are often manifested as a "dazed" state at first, that is, limited consciousness, misorientation, narrow attention, accompanied by purposeless movements, etc.

They may then show signs of avoiding or withdrawing from the surrounding environment, manifested by being silent, motionless, refusing to eat or drink, and having no response to external stimuli; they may also show signs of agitation, excessive activity, and impulsive destructive behavior.

At the same time, patients may show typical autonomic nervous system symptoms of anxiety, such as sweating, blushing, and increased heart rate. Patients sometimes cannot recall the traumatic event. The acute stress response generally lasts for several hours or days, with a good prognosis and complete symptom relief.

Experts from the Second People's Hospital of Hunan Province (Hunan Brain Hospital) remind us that to identify whether we or others may have acute stress disorder (ASD), we can pay attention to the following key points:

1. Exposure to traumatic events

Whether the individual has directly or indirectly experienced a traumatic event, such as a death threat, serious injury, or sexual assault.

2. When symptoms appear

Symptoms of ASD typically begin within 3 days to 1 month after the traumatic event.

3. Specific symptoms

Includes recurring, uncontrollable, intrusive, and distressing memories of the event, recurring distressing dreams about the event, a feeling that the traumatic event is replaying (e.g., in flashbacks), and intense psychological or physical distress when reminded of the event.

4. Emotional and cognitive responses

People may experience a persistent inability to experience positive emotions (such as feelings of happiness, contentment, or love), an altered sense of reality (such as being in a daze or as if time has slowed down), loss of memory for important parts of the traumatic event, and efforts to avoid disturbing memories, thoughts, or feelings associated with the event.

5. Physiological and behavioral responses

People with ASD may experience disturbed sleep, irritability or angry outbursts, excessive focus on the possibility of danger (hypervigilance), difficulty concentrating, and exaggerated reactions to loud noises, sudden movements, or other stimuli (startle reactions).

6. Impaired social function

Symptoms must cause significant distress or significantly interfere with the individual's daily functioning.

7. Exclude other situations

Doctors also check whether symptoms may be caused by medication use or other disorders to make sure the diagnosis of ASD is accurate.

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Liu Zhiying, Hunan Second People's Hospital (Hunan Brain Hospital)

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(Edited by YT)