Could You Have Adjustment Disorder/Stress Response Syndrome?
In recent years, disasters and tragedies seem to be everyday occurrences. From massive hurricanes to deadly shootings, the onslaught has many discussing the mental health of individuals experiencing major upheaval in their lives. After a particularly stressful life event, it is normal for individuals to experience periods of sadness, uncertainty, or loss. However, in some, these reactions begin to spiral out of control, and they have difficulty coping or accepting the situation.
A reaction becomes a mental illness when an individual experiences a significant change in thinking, behavior, or emotion that affects their everyday life. When a response to a life event is drastically damaging to an individual's daily routine or relationships, they may be experiencing adjustment disorder, also known as stress response syndrome. While this condition can be frightening, it is short-term and easily treatable.
What Is Adjustment Disorder/Stress Response Syndrome?
Adjustment disorder is an abnormally intense response to a life event. It is a severe, short-term condition that prevents an affected individual from coping healthily with a significant life change. In 2013, the most recent update of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) changed the official name of adjustment disorder to stress response syndrome. However, many use the two interchangeably and sometimes also refer to the condition as situational depression.
Stress response syndrome is pervasive and affects a wide range of individuals. It can occur at any point in the life cycle and especially during periods of upheaval or transition. Additionally, this condition is a significant issue after deadly disasters and tragedies.
Types Of Adjustment Disorders
To treat the mental illness more clearly, some psychiatrists differentiate between the various forms of adjustment disorders. There are three requirements for diagnosing this condition overall. Behavioral or emotional symptoms must develop within three months of the stressor, the stress must be abnormally intense or interfering with an individual's everyday life, and the signs aren't a part of another mental illness or healthy grieving process.
Adjustment disorders are categorized by the types of symptoms experienced. An individual can develop adjustment disorder with disturbance of conduct, depressed mood, anxiety, mixed depressed mood and anxiety, and mixed disturbance of emotion and behavior. If the symptoms don't neatly fit one of these categories, it is considered to be unspecified adjustment disorder.
