● Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is diagnosed when a person experiences recurrent flashbacks, nightmares, or intrusive thoughts related to a traumatic event that occurred more than one month ago, often persisting for months or years.

● The client’s report of flashbacks a year after the trauma clearly aligns with PTSD, not acute or episodic stress, as it reflects long-term psychological effects.

● PTSD involves emotional dysregulation, hyperarousal, avoidance of reminders, and can interfere significantly with daily functioning and quality of life.

● Recognizing these symptoms allows the nurse to ensure timely mental health referrals, supportive care, and ongoing emotional safety planning for the client.

● Anxiety is a subjective finding because it is based on the patient’s personal report of internal emotional experience, which cannot be directly observed by others.

● Subjective data are those symptoms or feelings that only the client can describe, such as stress, pain, or emotional states, and are usually gathered through interviewing.

● Nurses must rely on the patient's words to assess subjective symptoms and use therapeutic communication to further explore and address these concerns.

● Distinguishing between subjective and objective data is essential for accurate documentation and developing appropriate nursing interventions based on holistic assessment.

● Increased joint stiffness is a common age-related musculoskeletal change due to reduced synovial fluid, cartilage degeneration, and changes in connective tissues.

● This stiffness can impair range of motion, contribute to reduced mobility, and increase the risk for falls and functional limitations in older adults.

● Unlike muscle mass, which typically decreases with aging, joint structures become less flexible, making daily activities more physically challenging.

● Recognizing this expected finding allows nurses to implement interventions such as gentle range-of-motion exercises, warm compresses, and mobility support to preserve joint function.

● The first stage of the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) is the alarm stage, which begins when a stressor is perceived, triggering activation of the central nervous system (CNS).

● This leads to stimulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the sympathetic nervous system, initiating the body's immediate fight-or-flight response.

● Physiological changes follow this CNS activation, such as increased heart rate, blood pressure, and stress hormone release, preparing the body to respond to the threat.

● Recognizing that the CNS initiates the stress response helps nurses understand the progression of stress effects on the body and guides interventions that support stress regulation.

● Living in poverty is a clear example of chronic stress, as it represents a long-term, ongoing condition that exerts continuous psychological and physiological strain.

● Chronic stressors are persistent and often involve daily struggles with housing, food insecurity, financial instability, or access to health care, which can negatively impact overall health.

● This form of stress contributes to wear-and-tear on the body, often linked with conditions such as hypertension, depression, and immune suppression.

● Unlike acute stress, which is temporary, chronic stress accumulates over time, making coping mechanisms and long-term support strategies crucial for well-being.