Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can develop after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. While symptoms vary from person to person, mental health experts generally group the most common signs of PTSD into four main clusters, which together reveal seven key symptoms:

1. Intrusive memories – Recurrent, unwanted distressing memories, flashbacks, or nightmares about the traumatic event.
2. Avoidance – Deliberately avoiding places, people, activities, or conversations that remind you of the trauma.
3. Negative changes in thinking and mood – Persistent negative beliefs about yourself or the world, feelings of guilt or blame, emotional numbness, loss of interest in activities, and feeling detached from loved ones.
4. Hyperarousal (increased arousal and reactivity) – Being easily startled, feeling tense or “on edge,” irritability, angry outbursts, difficulty sleeping (insomnia), and hypervigilance.
5. Dissociative symptoms – Feeling like you’re observing yourself from outside your body (depersonalization) or feeling the world around you isn’t real (derealization).
6. Exaggerated startle response – Intense physical reactions to loud noises or sudden movements.
7. Concentration problems – Trouble focusing, remembering things, or making decisions.

These seven PTSD symptoms must last more than one month and cause significant distress or problems in daily life to meet the diagnostic criteria (DSM-5). Many people also experience anxiety, depression, or substance use alongside PTSD.

If you recognize several of these signs in yourself or someone you love, early treatment with therapy (such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or EMDR) and, when needed, medication can make a big difference. You don’t have to face PTSD alone reach out to a mental health professional or trusted support hotline today.