Duration

People diagnosed with PTSD make substantial improvement with treatment.¹⁶ Without treatment, many people continue to experience PTSD symptoms up to ten years after the initial traumatic event.²³

33-47% of people receiving treatment for PTSD reported experiencing symptoms more than a year after the initial traumatic event. ²³

34% of survivors of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing experienced PTSD 4-8 months later.¹⁸

4% of direct survivors of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing continued to experience PTSD 18-36 months later.²⁴

As a general rule:

• Acute PTSD symptoms last for less than three months
• Chronic PTSD symptoms generally persist for more than three months
• Delayed onset PTSD occurs six months after the traumatic event

Treatment is a personal healing that is different for every person. Depending on the source of the trauma (manmade vs. natural), the nature of the trauma (accidental vs. purposeful), and the age of the victim at the time of the trauma, treatment may last six months or persist for years.²

Treatment involves managing psychological and physical symptoms - most experts agree that counseling and/or psychotherapy is an important part of recovery. Often, medications are needed as an adjunct to counseling and/or psychotherapy. ²²

For more information on common components of PTSD treatment, please visit:

The National Center for PTSD, Department of Veterans Affairs

Dr. John Grohol's Psych Central