How Common is PTSD?

Unfortunately, it’s very common for those who’ve been exposed to combat — and it also comes up in other surprising contexts, even those who haven’t been overseas.

Women veterans unfortunately sometimes suffer from sexual assault, either by other service personnel or by others and it is a frequent problem from those kinds of incidents or any sort of threatening personal injury producing kind of situation.

It is a problem that unfortunately doesn’t show up quickly as a rule. Many of the Vietnam veterans, for example, didn’t really realize that they had PTSD for many years. It’s just over time, it becomes apparent that they have trouble dealing with other people, being around loud noises, and simply don’t function well in society. And so it’s in many ways an insidious problem, but very disabling, particular if it goes untreated over time.

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