Young women are the group most likely to experience PTSD, analysis of demographics living with the condition has revealed.
The NHS’ Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey finds that 12.6 per cent of women aged 16-24 years old screened positive for PTSD, compared with 3.6 per cent of men of the same age.
This is also higher than recorded PTSD rates among serving Armed Forces personnel, with Ministry of Defence data revealing the current rate is 0.2 per cent, with eight per cent needing to be initially assessed for the condition.
Rates of PTSD amongst veterans were higher in those who had previously deployed to Iraq and/or Afghanistan. But in addition to PTSD specifically, one in eight (13.2 per cent) of UK Armed Forces personnel were seen in military healthcare for a mental health related reason in 2022/23, with adjustment disorder and depressive episodes the most common disorders requiring specialist mental health care.
Females sought help more than males, similar to that seen in the UK general population.
It was also found that black/black British adults were significantly more likely to screen positive for PTSD, at 8.3 per cent compared with 4.2 per cent of their white British counterparts.
Similarly, economically inactive people were more likely to screen positive for PTSD (10.5 per cent) than their employed counterparts (2.7 per cent).
The analysis of the data comes from Clerkenwell Health, a British start-up that designs and delivers clinical trials to find cutting-edge psychedelic treatments for complex mental health conditions including PTSD, alcohol use disorder and depression.
The symptoms of PTSD include:
- Re-experiencing (including recurrent distressing images, thoughts, dreams or perceptions of the event)
- Avoidance and numbing (avoiding thoughts, feelings, activities or conversations associated with the trauma; diminished interest or participation in activities, feelings of detachment or estrangement from others)
- Hyperarousal (including difficulty falling or staying asleep, irritability or outbursts of anger, difficulty concentrating, hypervigilance and an exaggerated startle response).
The next NHS Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey is due later this year, but it is clear there has been a sharp increase in the number of people seeking contact with NHS mental health services – rising from 1.3million people a month in June 2020 to 1.75million people a month by March 2023.
Clerkenwell Health is now working on designing and delivering several trials around testing the use of psychedelics such as psilocybin to treat a range of mental health conditions, and are actively recruiting triallists for potential upcoming trials.
Clare Knight, senior clinical trial manager at Clerkenwell Health, said: “PTSD is a severe condition with distressing symptoms including flashbacks, nightmares and numbing. It may seem surprising that young women are more affected than members of the Armed Forces, but this just shows that serious trauma can be felt right across society.
“What’s also clear is that increasing numbers of people are being affected by mental health problems – and the NHS is struggling to cope with the growing pressure.
“More than 8million people in England alone are on antidepressants, rising by over a million people in just five years, and only 50 per cent of psychological therapies are moved to recovery.
“Psychedelic drugs offer new potential for treatments of complex mental health conditions like PTSD. We are actively recruiting participants for trials to help us find the next wave of treatments that could transform lives.”
