Typical symptoms of PTSD include painful, intrusive recollections of the event and nightmares. Other possible symptoms include feelings of alienation, emotional withdrawal and a loss of interest in life. Some victims become hypersensitive, anxious, insomniac, unable to focus their attention and subject to memory lapses. Those who have lost a loved one or who themselves survived a disaster are particularly prone to feeling guilty about their own survival when others died.
此外，還有可能情感或行為會變得麻木、冷漠，對生活缺乏興趣，不想與人親密來往；有些人會過分敏感、不安、失眠、注意力不集中、記憶欠佳；特別對失去親人或事件中的殘存者，很容易產生「別人都死了，只有我活著」的生存罪惡感。