POST-STRESS TRAUMATIC DISORDER A PROVOCATIVE PROPOSAL

In the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder has been classified in a new category called “Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders”. In this paper, the author considers as traumatizing those stressors that may cause a traumatic syndrome in individuals with specific psychobiological vulnerabilities. On the basis of the interpretation he has given of the relationship between trauma and stress, the author suggests the use of the construct of Post-stress Traumatic Disorder (PSTD) instead of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), as it gives a more accurate account of the actual series of developments. © 2016 Giovanni Fioriti Editore s.r.l.