The Post-traumatic Embitterment Disorder - Research Paper Example

? The Post-Traumatic embitterment Disorder (PTED) First The Post-Traumatic embitterment Disorder (PTED) Abstract PTED commonly referred to as Post Traumatic embitterment disorder is a kind of mental disorder that results as a psychological reaction to negative events that occur in ones life. Post Traumatic embitterment disorder was described and named by a German psychiatrist Dr. Michael Linden who observed that in a population, everyone experiences losses but a small sample of the population about 2%become stressed by such losses and can barely carry out their functional roles in society( GrrlScientist, 2009). (PTED is manifested after life events that are traumatic and cause a sense of helplessness to the individual who has to cope with events of injustice, humiliation and frustration. The first case of embitterment disorder a rose after the Germany reunification. Patients with PTED show distinct psychopathological features(Linden, Baumann, Liereberei, & Rotter ,2007).The history of Embitterment disorder began a decade ago, it is considered a rather new disorder and is not yet registered in the International statistical classification of diseases and health related problems(ICD-10) ( Linden, M., & Maercker, A. (2011). Post traumatic Embitterment disorder is the latest mental disorder that is being considered for inclusion in the DSM-V a body of information used by psychiatrists and therapists in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders the symptoms for PTED include prolonged feelings of embitterment, intrusive thoughts, feelings of dejection, suicidal thoughts and homicidal thoughts. The unique aspect of PTED is that it gives a phenomenon that is common universallysince it manifests itself in people who keep grudges, angry commenter’s on internet and even stalkers (Snyder, 2011). To enable better understanding of PTED, professor Linden carried out research studies on different aspects of the disorder. Linden used the PTED self-rating scale to determine the severity of embitterment and associated psychological symptoms and reactions to negative events (Linden, Baumann, Liereberei, & Rotter, 2007). Diagnosis The diagnostic features of PTED is the development of emotional symptoms following a normal negative life event like unemployment, bankruptcy, divorce or a combination of some. PTED is similar to post traumatic Stress Disorder except that PTSD patients suffer intense fear and anxiety after the event where as the PTED patients were mentally healthy until a triggering event reminded them of what they went through. PTED patients feel wronged and humiliated and that injustice has been done to them (GrrlScientist, 2009). The diagnostic criteria for Post traumatic Embitterment disorder is the significant emotional or behavioral symptoms that arise following a commonly normal negative event in life and the traumatic event can be experienced in a number of ways including; the victim knows about the event and sees it as the cause of illness, he perceives the event as unjust, as an insult, and as a humiliation, the person responds to the negative events with excessive embitterment, rage, and helplessness, and whenever they are reminded of the event, they react with emotional arousal. The characteristic symptoms include recurring episodes of intrusive memories as well as a decline change in mental state as a whole. The illness also impairs daily activities and symptoms persist for more that 6months (Life. space, 2011). Method To explore the prevalence rate for embitterment disorder, the PTED scale by Linden was given to four samples. The PTED scale constitutes of 19 items designed to ass’s features of embitterment reactions to negative events. There were four samples involved, The Train sample (TS), unselected patients (UP), the PTED and the control group. In the four samples, the frequency of occurrence and intensity of embitterment was noted. Internal consistency was examined and re-tests carried out using the UI sample to assess the reliability of the scale. The validity of the test carried was assessed through a discriminate analysis of the PTED sample and the matched control group. Results From the tests, high correlations were established on items in the scale that covered on the reactions of Intrusive memories, disempowerment, helplessness and injustice. Looking at the findings, it reflects the characteristic features discussed under diagnosis which are; a negative event triggers painful intrusive memories, feelings of injustice and helplessness and impairment of psychological well being and social functioning (Linden, Baumann, Liereberei, & Rotter, 2007). Discussion From studies done, there is no single cause established for mental disorders and that is why in many instances mental illnesses are seen as a continuum with many different aspects. Research has also shown that existing factors like negative events, hormonal changes, drugs and social environment can cause mental disorders (Guney, n.d.). Embitterment is probably by now known by many people. Not everyone goes through negative events in life becomes ballistic but some do. Embitterment builds over time and manifests itself in unwanted fantasies to exact revenge on those perceived to be blamed for one’s misfortunes (Diamond, 2011). Embitterment can be understood as a phenomenon similar to anxiety and mood disorders and basing on the results from the UI and GP samples it can be assumed that some cases categorized as depression or phobia could be cases of PTED. The retest reliability and the consistency of the tests were high. The validity of the tests was also high. However, the limitation to the study was that it only used the German version of the scale therefore future investigations in varied populations are required to assess the psychometric properties in other versions. Another limitation is that the different samples were subjected to two different versions of the PTED scale and this could have influenced the results future studies should ensure the tests are all standardized (Linden, Baumann, Liereberei, & Rotter, 2007). The study was concentrated on trying to diagnose PTED by comparing people perceived to have PTED to other mentally ill individuals. Future studies should concentrate on how to make the bitter individuals less bitter (McSlacker, 2008). Recommendations Justice is a human right and feelings of injustice can trigger strong emotional reactions and one of these reactions is bitterness which is commonly associated with a feeling of unfairness or injustice. Bitterness is a common phenomenon and embitterment signifies a prolonged emotional condition of bitterness. Bitterness is part of the normal spectrum of emotions just like anxiety, anger and depression but the only difference is the frequency of occurrence, duration and intensity (Rotter, 2011). At the moment, DSM-V is being revised and since insurance companies are covered for mental disorders officially listed in the DSM and by including PTED in the manual of recognized mental illnesses will go a long way in assisting PTED victims and encourage researchers to explore more into the treatment of the disorder (GrrlScientist, 2009). A promising treatment approach for PTED is wisdom therapy which is basically a form of cognitive therapy based on recent developments that have taken place in the field of wisdom psychology. Treatment for PTED involves presenting the patients with cases of life problems that seem difficult to solve and teaching them to change their perspective of those issues (Linden, 2008). It is believed that the more the direct exposure to a traumatic event the higher the emotional harm but the traumatic events can be converted into successful experiences through positive psychology (Guney, n.d). The main challenge in treating PTED is that those with PTED rarely seeking medical attention simply because they are not aware of their condition. They don’t see the need to change instead they believe the world around them should be the one to change. This makes them resistant to treatment and resolve to revenge. However if such people discover their state and seek treatment, Cognitive –behavioral therapy is the most successful treatment for PTED (GrrlScientist, 2009). Anyone can experience feelings of rage and bitterness. Normal people can be pushed into committing suicides or homicides. Such individuals could be suffering from post traumatic embitterment disorder and therefore this should be seen as reason enough to pursue treatment and further research on the subject of PTED. References Diamond, S. A. (2011, October 14). Anger, Rage and Pathological Embitterment: What Motivates Mass Murders? Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/evil-deeds/201110/anger-rage-and-pathological-embitterment-what-motivates-mass-murders GfrllScientist. (2009, June 2). Post-Traumatic Embitterment Disorder: The newest mental illness? Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://scienceblogs.com/grrlscientist/2009/06/02/posttraumatic-embitterment-dis/ Guney, S. (n.d.). Mental Health, Trauma and Trauma Related Disorders. Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://www.academia.edu/1621066/mental_health_trauma_and_trauma_related_disorder Life.space. (2011, June 7). Post Traumatic Embitterment Disorder. Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://www.suicideforum.com/showthread.php?101208-Post-Traumatic-Embitterment-Disorder Linden, M. (2008). Posttraumatic Embitterment Disorder and Wisdom Therapy. Journal of Cognitive psychotherapy, 22 (1), 4-14. Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/springer/jcogp/2008/00000022/00000001/art00002 Linden, M., & Maercker, A. (2011). Embitterment Societal, psychological, and clinical perspectives. Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://link.springer.com/content/pdf/bfm%3A978-3-211-99741-3%2F1.pdf Linden, M., Baumann, K., Liereberei, B., & Rotter, M. (2007). Posttraumatic Embitterment Disorder: Definition, Evidence, Diagnosis, Treatment. Hingkong J psychiatry, 17, 103-104. Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://easap.asia/journal_file/0703_V17N3_p103.pdf Linden, M., Baumann, K., Liereberei, B., & Rotter, M. (2009). The Post-Traumatic Embitterment Disorder Self-Rating Scale (PTED Scale). Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 16(2), 137-147. Mcslacker, C. (2008, January 21). Embitterment Disorder: Cool, A Brand New Disease! Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://www.crankyfitness.com/2008/01/embitterment-disorder-cool-brand-new.html Rotter, M. (2011, May 29). Embitterment and personality disorder. Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://narcissists.wordpress.com/2011/05/29/embitterment-and-personality-disorder/ Snyder, S. (2011, April 14). Post Traumatic Embitterment Disorder. Retrieved May 14, 2013, from http://samsnyder.com/2011/04/14/post-traumatic-embitterment-disorder/ Read More