Post Traumatic Embitterment Disorder: When Workplace Trauma Lingers.
Nigel Morris
Mental Health Specialist Coach, I help executives who are facing workplace bullying to take control of their situation, and resume their job duties with confidence.
Post Traumatic Embitterment Disorder (PTED) is a recently identified condition characterized by intense feelings of injustice, bitterness, and resentment in response to negative workplace experiences. While not yet included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), PTED has gained increasing recognition in recent years.
The main trigger for PTED is exposure to traumatic events in the workplace, such as being unfairly fired, passed over for promotion, bullied by managers or co-workers, or otherwise mistreated. While many people experience workplace adversity, some develop a severe and persistent reaction that meets the criteria for PTED:
People with PTED tend to blame specific individuals or the organization for their suffering. They may pursue legal action or retaliation. In some cases, the embitterment leads to deteriorating performance and mental health problems like depression or anxiety.
If you recognize signs of PTED in yourself or a colleague, don't ignore it. Seek professional help from someone experienced in workplace trauma and PTSD. With understanding and active coping methods, it is possible to move past the bitterness and regain satisfaction in your career. Organizations should also take workplace trauma seriously and have support systems in place. Unresolved PTED hurts both the employee and the company.
Experienced ESE Director | Strategic Administrator|Child Centered Outcomes Advocacy, LLC
1 年So very true this is a real occurrence !
Achievement Coach at University of Central Lancashire
1 年Nigel this is very interesting ??. Organisations should be investing in training their staff especially managers to avoid this. Can you recommend any such training?
Human Being
1 年Unresolved PTED (the effects of abuse that result in the target) are hurtful to both the victim and the employers… WOW… This “disorder” sounds like the worker has difficulty letting things go, like they blame others, & they are the cause of their problems? So… Employer reps falsify documents to cover up workplace injuries that occurred when unsafe conditions in the workplace that were reported were ignored - but that’s not important, that’s not the “harm”. The only “harm” worth talking about is the workers traumatic responses … which is causing harm to the employer & to themselves? Labour relations, respondents & thriving “witnesses” repeatedly make false statements & give false information to investigators which investigators accept - without fact checking any of it - because “that’s not their job” but that’s not what matters. It’s the workers traumatic responses to continuing betrayals, deceptions, degradations, Darvo attacks, emotional abuse, that is hurting … the employer? It’s the traumatic responses that are causing the workers decline? Or. Maybe … the employers systemic mobbing, violence, retaliations & betrayals are inhumane & a form of psycholgical torture, & the responses are normal?