
Suggest Treatment For PTSD

Question: Sister was diagnosed with possible PTSD been happening for 6 years jerking movements stuttering, hiccup when speaking only when having symptoms, other times throughout the year she is fine then 6 months ago said hospital emergency room visit and hospital stay doctor said possible nervous breakdown of some sort but she would not listen. Never got help now she has declined and thinks people are leaving pictures in house but they pictures that may have been in house as they are from our childhood , thinks people are following her, going in her car, yells and screams uncontrollably, says her mind is racing and can't sleep. Complains nothing in house works, her brand new car is junk, thinks tracking her. etc
Brief Answer:
Clarifications
Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for using health care magic for posting your query.
I have gone through your question in detail and I can understand what you are going through.
However I would require a couple of more details to help you in answering your query in a better justified way.
1) How long are these symptoms persisting? Is it episodic or continuous?
2. When you say it is PTSD there has to be a trauma event. Was there any?
3. Is she on any treatment?
Hope to hear from you at your earliest convenience.
Regards and wish you good health,
Dr. Srikanth Reddy MD
Neuro-Psychiatrist and Sexologist
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Prasad


She is not on any treatment, has been taking hormone pills thru GYN, yes she had a traumatic event 7 years ago, then in the months that followed she started to get panic attack like symptoms, they escalated to a on and off again uncontrollable body jerking movements with a hiccup sound and stuttering like voice, repeating words when trying to speak example like this ta' ta' ta' talk' talking' stuttering like. Difficulty getting words out, also would stop stuttering when she would get mad and yell.Doctors thought possible seizures but video taping in hospital did not show this. She recently was video taped in hospital in summer with uncontrollable jerking movements said they did not see seizure activity, but after two days she was pacing in room and saying get the lobes off I don't want people watching me. Her trauma happened seven years ago had a incident at work was complaining that someone was getting into her computer and to mke story short taken top a psych center and had bad experience since then has been getting these symptoms but gotten worse over the years. The uncontrollable motions/stuttering/hiccup comes and goes weeks and sometime days. But then this summer doc at hospital thought she may be having nervous breakdown, she would not listen difficult. She has gotten worse has been paranoid for a while but now real bad, thinks people come in house when she is not there. think family is leaving pictures of friends/family from childhood that are real pics but we are not leaving them they must be hers. She complains unhappy where she lives just moved about 5 months ago due to financial reasons,and has gotten worse was fine in warm weather since late oct /nov worse, yells at times and screams historically in conversations " you don't understand," "tell me why are you people doing this to me regarding pictures", if you mention stress yells "yes i am stresses,I havePTSD don't you get it. Then at times can be calm and normal, however since approximately Dec 2013 she has not been good. Conversations consists of talking normal then all of a sudden she starts yelling I would be fie if everyone will leave me alone, and people will stop leaving pictures in my house, and going in my car. Then she will complain the appliances don't work which are newer, the car which is new junk,
has no motivation, but is screaming lately during every conversation accusing us of putting pictures in house car etc. Says if your doing this what are you trying to tell me etc.
She then at times will tell you my brain is not functioning you don't get it I am not myself, I haven't been myself. I m jerking, stuttering, not going out of the house for weeks at a time. It used to be episodic, with the jerking, hiccup, stuttering and not going ut for days and weeks.
For the last 4 weeks plus she has been out of control screaming when talking to family members if she i talking to you if she tells us that people are leaving pics in car or house and we say no thats impossible she either gets quiet and says then how are they getting there or starts yelling unstoppable blaming us this is newer symptoms and has lasted on and off the last several weeks. Will not go back to doctor ays I already went what did they do for me.Not treating now
she takes excedrin I know as she gets headaches complains mind racing, can't sleep says paces, we noticed she cannot handle stress when problems come she avoids talking about them and say my brain can process this function I can't talk about this now and avoids all the time when on telephone or confront. She tells doctors I'm suffering from seizures, or mold, it's my brain, its something else always thinks she has some major illness except what is actual happening.
Brief Answer:
Schizophrenia
Detailed Answer:
Hello
Thanks for the follow-up query.
You have given an elaborate explanation of the symptoms.
These symptoms suggest that it is not only a PTSD but certainly more than that. It seems to be a case of schizophrenia. The drugs which will be effective in these cases are Risperidone or Olanzapine or quetiapine etc. Of these drug, risperiodone is my drug of choice.
These medications will start having its effect in 1-2 weeks and will have to be taken for around a year. Anxiety could be an accompanying symptom in schizophrenia and the illness mostly precipitates with stress.
She needs to be on medicine regularly. If she is not taking tablets regularly the there are option of long acting anti-psychotic injections as well.
Hope I am able to answer your concerns.
If you have any further query, I would be glad to help you.
If not, you may close the discussion and if possible you may rate the answer for me, so that I get a good feedback.
In future if you wish to contact me directly, you can use the below mentioned link:
bit.ly/dr-srikanth-reddy
Wish you good health,
Kind regards
Dr. Srikanth Reddy M.D.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Shanthi.E


Could this be anything else as she has in the past had one gran map seizure 7 years ago.Any chance could be such as delusional depression, or severe nervous breakdown etc
Thanks
Brief Answer:
Unlikely
Detailed Answer:
Hello
Thanks for the follow-up query.
As you have mentioned that mostly the symptoms are continuous it is unlikely that it could be related to the seizures.
It can be a delusional depression, but the symptoms are mostly stating the first rank symptoms of schizophrenia and hence the chances of it being schizophrenia is more. However the treatment drugs are more or less the same except for the anti depressant. All the psychiatric conditions of delusion depression, schizophrenia or sever depression are mostly as a result of nervous breakdown cause of stress. Stress has led to this illness but the treatment should be with anti psychotics.
Regards
Dr. Srikanth Reddy
Note: For further guidance on mental health, Click here.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Shanthi.E

Answered by

Get personalised answers from verified doctor in minutes across 80+ specialties
