Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Who will get it, and who won't?

 

 It is known that many people are exposed to traumatic events during their lives; most people will react strongly to the event both physically (heart rate, breathing, sweating) and mentally (depression, nightmares, intrusive thoughts), but most of them will overcome these symptoms and continue on their life path. There are people for whom the nightmare goes on and on and takes over their whole lives. They are the ones who will eventually suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. What makes some people more sensitive to these events? Is the problem in processing the event and storing it in the brain? Could the problem be a failure in other systems that do not allow the event to be saved in a controlled manner? How does this relate to our immune system and cortisol levels? Is there a window of opportunity for treatment and prevention of the development of the syndrome?