Although post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often thought of as combat-related, there are actually far more women than men who suffer from the disorder, which can lead to flashbacks, anxiety, obsessive thoughts, and emotional numbing, as well as stress-related physical symptoms. Most women affected by PTSD have experienced sexual victimization, according to experts.
An October 16, 2018 article in Everyday Health outlined the extent of the problem, current PTSD research, and treatment methods. The article noted that women are often reluctant to report sexual violence because they fear reprisal or that their stories won’t be believed.
Karestan Koenen, professor of psychiatric epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, faced such “re-victimization” herself after being raped when working in Africa nearly 30 years ago. At the time, her superiors chastised her for “promiscuity” rather than offering her support. Koenen, who now leads cutting-edge research on PTSD and genetics, told Everyday Health that her experience “was absolutely defining in terms of how I’m spending my life.”
Read the Everyday Health article: Women and PTSD: The Public Health Problem Nobody Talks About
Learn more
Halting the Legacy of PTSD (Harvard Public Health magazine)
Helping victims of sexual violence overcome PTSD (Harvard Chan School feature)