If you experienced trauma as a child, there’s a chance it developed into post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as an adult. While you may be able to pinpoint a specific event that led to your condition, others will find it difficult to comprehend what constitutes trauma. Leading them to the question, “Do I have PTSD from childhood?”

It’s an important question to answer as it may give some insight into your current psychological state. Throughout this article, we’ll discuss PTSD, how it can develop from childhood, and whether or not you experienced trauma as a child.

What is PTSD?

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a type of anxiety disorder that develops after someone experiences a dangerous, shocking, or scary event. While it’s natural to feel anxiety as a traumatic event takes place, people who still feel this anxiety at least six months after the event may be diagnosed with PTSD. Especially if this fear and stress inhibit their daily life. ¹

Since traumas range from person to person, it can be difficult to identify what may develop into PTSD. For example, one person may develop PTSD after a car accident while another will after the sudden death of a loved one. Symptoms of PTSD will usually appear within three months of the event but can take upwards of a year.

To be diagnosed with PTSD, a person must meet the following criteria: ²

• One re-experiencing symptom
• One avoidance symptom
• Two arousal and reactivity symptoms
• Two cognition and mood symptoms

While each of these PTSD symptoms may vary, they’re generally characterized as:

Re-Experiencing Symptoms

Perhaps the defining symptom of PTSD, re-experiencing symptoms include:

• Flashbacks (reliving the psychological, emotional, and physical symptoms of the traumatic event)
• Frightening and intrusive thoughts
• Nightmares

While it’s different for everyone, re-experiencing symptoms can randomly appear. And they can be triggered by varying words, objects, and situations.

Avoidance Symptoms

If you know what triggers your PTSD symptoms, you may find yourself: ³

• Avoiding places, events, or objects that remind you of your trauma
• Evading thoughts or emotions related to the traumatic event

Avoidance symptoms are common with other forms of anxiety, such as social anxiety disorder. They are also one of the biggest inhibitors as they can prevent you from going out and doing things you enjoy.

Arousal and Reactivity Symptoms

While they’ll develop after a traumatic event, arousal and reactivity symptoms are usually more consistent and not triggered by something:

• Angry outbursts
• Being tense (on edge)
• Easily startled
• Sleep difficulties

These symptoms often fuel stress and make daily activities more difficult.

Cognition and Mood Symptoms

While these symptoms begin after a traumatic event, they usually become worse (or more inhibiting) over time:

• Difficulty remembering key aspects of the traumatic event
• Feelings of guilt and blame towards oneself
• Lack of interest in activities you once enjoyed
• Negative thoughts about yourself and the world

Cognition and mood symptoms aren’t directly related to an injury or substance use. Instead, they develop from the event itself and lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness.

Can You Have PTSD Without a Traumatic Event?

From a diagnosis perspective, you technically can’t have PTSD without a traumatic event. However, recent research has shown people can experience PTSD symptoms without experiencing a specific trauma. In most cases, a series of stressors can lead to a pattern of symptoms which results in a form of anxiety.

Still, whether this struggle is a type of anxiety or PTSD remains unclear. While doctors cannot diagnose such circumstances as PTSD, more mental health professionals recognize that PTSD can come about from events not typically associated with trauma, such as employment difficulties and divorce.

Due to these findings, it can be suggested that a series of negative events that take place in childhood may culminate into PTSD.

PTSD From Childhood Trauma in Adults

According to the American Society for Positive Care of Children (SPCC), there are 4.4 million annual reports of child maltreatment and 7.9 million reports of child abuse. In 91.4% of these cases, either one or both parents are the cause of the trauma.

Childhood trauma is a loose term that’s used to describe any of the following:

• Bullying
• Community violence
• Complex trauma
• Disasters
• Early childhood trauma
• Intimate partner violence
• Medical trauma
• Physical abuse
• Refugee trauma
• Sexual abuse
• Sex trafficking
• Terrorism and violence
• Traumatic grief

If a child experiences any of these types of trauma, they become more vulnerable to the development of PTSD. However, PTSD symptoms may not be immediately apparent. As a result, children can develop them later in life. ⁴

Children with PTSD will showcase common symptoms observed in adults, including:

• A constant state of fear due to scary thoughts and memories of the traumatic event
• Nightmares (usually of the traumatic event)
• Reliving the trauma over and over again (flashbacks)

One of the biggest difficulties with child PTSD is the fact that many don’t receive the proper help they need. When a child’s PTSD goes untreated, it can lead to worse symptoms later in life.

Undiagnosed PTSD From Childhood

If PTSD goes undiagnosed in childhood, it can either emerge or become increasingly worse in adulthood. For adults struggling with PTSD that they believe came from childhood, the first step is finding professional help. By continuing to leave trauma unresolved, you may be putting yourself in a position where symptoms can become more intense.

PTSD treatment typically involves two methods:

1.) Therapy

The most common PTSD therapy is known as trauma-focused psychotherapy. This therapy will focus on your memories of the event and its meaning. Furthermore, your therapist will incorporate several techniques to help you process your trauma. ⁵

Other therapies PTSD victims have found useful include:

• Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) – Identifies negative thought patterns and teaches you how to reframe them.

• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) – You’ll relive traumatic events while paying attention to a specific sound or a back-and-forth movement.

• Prolonged Exposure (PE) – If you’ve developed avoidance symptoms, this therapy will expose you to what you’re avoiding. The idea is to confront your negative feelings to gain control of them.

2.) Medication

Most people with PTSD will also receive an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) or an SNRI (serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor). The most commonly prescribed are: ⁶

• Fluoxetine (Prozac)
• Paroxetine (Paxil)
• Sertraline (Zoloft)
• Venlafaxine (Effexor)

While there are other types of medication for PTSD, the above four are the most effective. You may also find other forms of medicine to be useful. For example, many people are using cannabis for PTSD.

Do I Have PTSD From Childhood Test

Still not sure if you experience PTSD or not? Here are ten questions to ask yourself to help you figure it out:

1. Do you have trouble focusing (i.e. with reading, TV shows, or conversations)?
2. Do memories of a traumatic event come to mind at undesired moments?
3. Is it difficult to remember parts of the traumatic event?
4. Have you been avoiding people, places, or objects that make you think of your trauma?
5. Do you ever have rushes of anger or irritability?
6. Do you feel on edge more than normal, especially around other people?
7. Have you avoided thinking about the trauma or the way it makes you feel?
8. Do you become frightened, angry, or upset when you remember the trauma?
9. Have you experienced symptoms of anxiety (sweating, racing heartbeat, etc.) when thinking about the trauma?
10. Have you felt detached from loved ones around you?

If you answered “yes” to most of these questions, there’s a good chance you struggle with PTSD. However, it’s important to speak to a mental health professional to receive a proper diagnosis.

Final Word

PTSD doesn’t discriminate and many of those who struggle have developed it from childhood trauma. While some may be able to pinpoint an exact traumatic event, others may find they lived through a series of stressors that compiled into PTSD symptoms. Since each situation is different, we highly recommend speaking to a mental health professional.

References

¹ Mann SK, Marwaha R, Torrico TJ. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. 2024 Feb 25. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan–. PMID: 32644555.

² Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (US). Trauma-Informed Care in Behavioral Health Services. Rockville (MD): Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (US); 2014. (Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series, No. 57.) Exhibit 1.3-4, DSM-5 Diagnostic Criteria for PTSD. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK207191/box/part1_ch3.box16/

³ Sheynin J, Shind C, Radell M, Ebanks-Williams Y, Gilbertson MW, Beck KD, Myers CE. Greater avoidance behavior in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. Stress. 2017 May;20(3):285-293. doi: 10.1080/10253890.2017.1309523. Epub 2017 Apr 16. PMID: 28322068; PMCID: PMC5490437.

⁴ Torrico TJ, Mikes BA. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Children. 2024 Apr 20. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan–. PMID: 32644566.

⁵ Schrader C, Ross A. A Review of PTSD and Current Treatment Strategies. Mo Med. 2021 Nov-Dec;118(6):546-551. PMID: 34924624; PMCID: PMC8672952.

⁶ Williams T, Phillips NJ, Stein DJ, Ipser JC. Pharmacotherapy for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2022 Mar 2;3(3):CD002795. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD002795.pub3. PMID: 35234292; PMCID: PMC8889888.