Mental health experts dispute linking PTSD to violence after Fort Hood shooting

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/04/03/mental-health-experts-dispute-linking-ptsd-to-violence-after-fort-hood-shooting/

Mental health experts dispute linking PTSD to violence after Fort Hood shooting
By Reuters
Thursday, April 3, 2014 16:57 EDT
By Victoria Cavaliere

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Mental health experts raised concerns on Thursday that the deadly shootings at Fort Hood in Texas would unfairly label post-traumatic stress disorder sufferers as violent, saying there is no data to back up that link.

The U.S. soldier suspected of killing three people before committing suicide at the military base on Wednesday was being evaluated for post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, and was being treated for depression and anxiety, the military said.

As investigators tried to piece together a motive for the rampage, which left 16 others wounded, mental health experts and veterans groups dismissed PTSD as a possible trigger for the violent episode.

“There’s a misconception with PTSD that a symptom is anger and violence,” said Dr. Harry Croft, a San Antonio-based psychiatrist and author of the PTSD help book I Always Sit With My Back To The Wall.