Post-Dramatic Stress Disorder (PDSD)

**Disclaimer: The intention of this post is not to make light of an actual serious illness of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder...but rather to provide a therapeutic outlet for myself as a recovering PDSD sufferer.**

What is PDSD?
It is an emotional condition that develops as a result in participating in a dramatic production. The symptoms generally start developing after closing night. It is an acute disorder that has a good prognosis. However, once one has experienced this disorder, they are more likely to experience it again in the future!

Symptoms may include two or more of the following:
-Feelings of sadness
-Randomly inserting lines from the play into everyday life
-Having flashbacks/nightmares about the play
-Erroneously believing that they have to go to rehearsal.
-Wishing they had some fake eyelashes to wear
-Headaches
-Nausea, Vomiting, and Diarrhea
-Oliguria
-Cardiac arrhythmia's

Treatments:
There has been very little research done in the area of treatments for this disorder. One sufferer of this disorder stated that keeping in contact with cast and crew members helped diminish the symptoms. Drinking a hot cup of tea and reading a good book also been known to help ease the suffering. Talking about your experiences with others (even if they get sick of hearing about all your stories) is another recommended therapy.

Prevention:
The only prevention is abstinence: Do not get involved in any dramatic productions, EVER! But really, who wants to do that?

P.S. In case you're wondering...I only experienced 3 of the 9 listed symptoms...I guess it was a mild case. :)