- 2 Industrial Park Dr. Suite 5, Concord, NH 03301
- 2 Industrial Park Dr. Suite 5, Concord, NH 03301
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop after combat, injury, loss, or other traumatic events during service, and it can surface months or even years later. Many veterans don’t recognize the signs in themselves at first, and family members often notice them before anyone else does.
If you’re seeing these signs in yourself or someone you love, treatment can help. Call (603) 915-4223 to talk with our admissions team, or verify your insurance benefits online.
PTSD symptoms tend to fall into four groups. Veterans may notice signs in one group or in all of them, and the signs can change over time.
Intrusive memories, nightmares, and flashbacks can make a past event feel like it’s happening again. Reminders such as loud noises, certain smells, crowds, or anniversaries may trigger strong physical or emotional reactions.
Many veterans steer clear of people, places, conversations, or situations that bring the event to mind. Some avoid their own thoughts and feelings, which can look like emotional numbness or pulling away from the people closest to them.
Persistent guilt, shame, or fear can set in, along with negative beliefs about oneself or the world. Veterans may lose interest in things they used to enjoy, feel detached from others, or have trouble remembering parts of what happened.
Hypervigilance, being easily startled, irritability, and angry outbursts are common. Trouble sleeping and trouble concentrating can follow, and the constant sense of being on guard can be exhausting.
PTSD doesn’t always look the way people expect. Some signs can be mistaken for personality, stress, or the normal strain of adjusting to civilian life:
PTSD and substance use often occur together. A veteran who can’t sleep or can’t turn off the alarm in their head may start drinking or using drugs to cope, and over time the substance use can deepen the symptoms. Treating only one of the two tends to leave the other in place, which is why care that addresses both can make a difference.
Symptoms that last more than a month, or that get in the way of work, relationships, sleep, or daily life, are worth bringing to a professional. You don’t have to wait for things to fall apart.
If you’re in crisis or thinking about harming yourself, call or text 988 and press 1 to reach the Veterans Crisis Line, or call 911.
Bold Steps offers a partial hospitalization program (PHP), an intensive outpatient program (IOP), outpatient care, and virtual IOP at both our Concord and Nashua locations. Treatment combines individual and group therapy with approaches such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). Trauma-informed care is part of how our team works, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is one of the therapies we offer when it fits a person’s needs.
Our veterans program and our trauma and PTSD treatment page explain more about how care works. Bold Steps accepts TRICARE and VA benefits, and our team can help you understand your options.
It can be hard to know what to say. Many families find it helps to share what they’ve noticed without pushing, to listen without trying to fix, and to gently encourage an evaluation. You’re welcome to call us on a veteran’s behalf to ask questions about treatment, insurance, and what the first steps look like.
Yes. PTSD symptoms can begin soon after a traumatic event, or they can appear months or years later, sometimes after a major life change or a new stressor.
It can be. Irritability and angry outbursts are common PTSD symptoms, though anger on its own doesn’t mean someone has PTSD. A professional assessment can help sort out what’s behind it.
No. Many people who go through traumatic events don’t develop PTSD, and how a person responds depends on many factors.
Yes. The two often occur together, and treating them together is usually more effective than treating either one alone.
PTSD is commonly treated with therapy, and sometimes with medication management alongside it. Your care team builds a plan around your symptoms, history, and goals.
You don’t have to carry this alone. Call (603) 915-4223 for a confidential conversation, or verify your insurance to see your options.
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