Many notable people have had post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. This is a list of people with verifiable sources confirming that they struggled with PTSD. In the case of historical figures, retrospective diagnoses are only included when mainstream, expert sources indicate that they probably had the disorder.
PTSD is a mental disorder which develops in the aftermath of a traumatic event, such as witnessing or experiencing warfare, sexual assault, child abuse, domestic abuse, genocide, natural disasters, traffic collisions, and so on. Not everyone who experiences trauma will develop PTSD. Symptoms include flashbacks, nightmares, increased fight-or-flight response, mental and physical distress when reminded of the trauma, efforts to avoid traumatic memories or reminders of the trauma, forgetting parts of the traumatic event(s), negative beliefs about oneself and/or the world, reckless behavior, problems sleeping, irritability, negative emotional state, a feeling of being detached from others, blaming oneself for the trauma, and an inability to experience happiness or pleasure. Women are more likely to have PTSD than men.
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A
Anthony Acevedo (1924–2018), Mexican-American soldier in WWII Agar Adamson (1865–1929), Canadian soldier Lily Allen (born 1985), British singer Denis Avey (1919–2015), British soldier and POWAvey, Denis and Broomby, Rob."THE MAN WHO BROKE INTO AUSCHWITZ by Denis Avey with Rob Broomby", 30 June 2014
B Mel B (born 1975), English singer-songwriter Kelsea Ballerini (born 1993), American singer Mischa Barton (born 1986), British-American actorMischa Barton: The grim truth about growing up in the public eye Harper's Bazaar. 11 June 2021 Derek Bell (born 1963), English footballer Donald Bolduc (born 1962), American soldier and politician Kate Bornstein (born 1948), American performance artist and writer Gregory Boyington (1912–1988), American aviator and World War Two fighter ace. Never diagnosed, but he displayed all the classical symptoms of PTSD. He once said Show me a hero and I'll show you a bum. Abigail Breslin (born 1996), American actor and singer Jasper Brett (1895–1917), Irish rugby player Kylar Broadus (born 1963), American attorney Joseph Brodak, American bank robber Adrien Brody (born 1973), American actor Chris Brown (born 1989), American singer-songwriter Damien Brown (born 1984), Australian mixed martial artist Nish Bruce (1956–2002), British Army soldier and skydiver Steve Buscemi (born 1957), American actor Germán Busch (1903–1939), Bolivian military officer and 36th president of Bolivia
C Pedro Cano (1920–1952), Mexican-American soldier in WWIIValley Town Crier, North McAllen-Edinburg; September 7, 2005: Section I, Page 2 Joseph Cao (born 1967), Vietnamese-American politician Lynda Cash (born 1949 or 1950), British Royal Navy sailor William H. Christian (1825–1887), American Brigadier General during the Civil War Circuit Des Yeux (born 1988), American vocalist, composer, and singer-songwriter Daisy Coleman (1997–2020), American activist for sexual assault victims Kayden Coleman (born 1986), American social media influencer and transgender rights advocate Roger Cooper, British businessman Leela Corman (born 1972), American cartoonist Charly Cox (born 1995), British mental health activist Chris Cramer (1948–2021), British news journalist and executive James Credle (1945–2023), American activist for veterans and LGBT people
D Roméo Dallaire (born 1946), Canadian humanitarian and politician Tony Dell (born 1945), Australian cricketer Norbert Denef (born 1949), German advocate against sex abuse in the Roman Catholic churchAntje Hildebrandt: Missbrauchsopfer im Interview. „Der Pfarrer war sich keiner Schuld bewusst.“ In: Die Welt, 26. Februar 2010 (online)Antje Hildebrandt: Ein Pfarrer vergriff sich über Jahre hinweg an Norbert Denef. Das Opfer leidet noch heute. In: Märkische Allgemeine, 5. Februar 2010 (online)Interview by Dunja Hayali in ZDF, Morgenmagazin, 26. Februar 2010 () Beth Dobbin (born 1994), Scottish sprinter Mark L. Donald (born 1967), American Navy SEAL Taylor Dumpson (born 1995 or 1996), American attorney. Alastair Duncan (1952–2016), British Army officer
E Lynndie England (born 1982), American war criminal who participated in the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse Rubén Espinosa (1983–2015), Mexican photographer and journalist Sara Evans (born 1971), American singer-songwriter
F George Farmer, British acuascaper Luis Fonseca (born 1980), American Navy hospital corpsman Stephanie Foo (born 1987), Malaysian-American radio journalist and author Kelly Fraser (1993–2019), Canadian Inuk singer
G Catherine Galliford (born 1966 or 1967), Canadian RCMP corporal Lorena Gallo (born 1969), American domestic violence victim advocate acquitted of cutting off her husband's penis Jimmy Galt (1885–1935), Scottish footballer U Gambira (born 1979), Burmese activist and former Buddhist monk Abbie Gardner-Sharp (1843–1921), American kidnapping survivor who wrote a memoir about her experience Connie Glynn (born 1994), English Internet personality Whoopi Goldberg (born 1955), American actor, comedian, and author Ariana Grande (born 1993), American singer-songwriter Robert Graves (1895–1985), British poet, novelist, and critic Dror Green (born 1954), Israeli-Bulgarian writer The never-ending story, Book review: Dror Green's 'Back to Crew No. 4] Speak, memory: an interview with Dror Green Stéphane Grenier, Canadian military officer and writer Matt Gresham (born 1988), Australian singer-songwriter
H Darrell Hammond (born 1955), American comedian and actor David Haigh, British lawyer Craig Harrison (born 1974), British sniper Angel Haze (born 1991), American rapper and singer Zoe Helene (born 1964), American ecofeminist and advocate of psychedelic drugsSusan, Strongman. "The Woman Who Says Psychedelic Medicine Cured Her PTSD." Radio New Zealand. October 24, 2018 Carle Hessay (1911–1978), German-Canadian painter David Hogg (born 2000), American gun control activist Jose L. Holguin (1921–1994), American WWII veteran Mandy Horvath (born 1993), American mountaineer Francine Hughes (1947–2017), American woman acquitted of murdering her abusive husband (battered woman syndrome)
I
J Harry Jackson (1924–2011), American artist Note: A version of this article appears in print on April 30, 2011, on page D7 of the New York edition with the headline: "Harry Jackson, 87, Artist of American West". Paris Jackson (born 1998), American model, actor, singer, and musician Oliver Jackson-Cohen (born 1986), English actor. His mental health challenges have informed how he plays different characters. Jameela Jamil (born 1986), English actor and activist Abd Al Rahim Abdul Rassak Janko (born 1977), Kurdish man detained at Guantanamo Daniel Johns (born 1979), Australian musician and singer-songwriter Dwight H. Johnson (1947–1971), American veteran who received the Medal of Honor
K Jason Kander (born 1981), American attorney and politician Shalini Kantayya, filmmaker and environmental activist Fergal Keane (born 1961), Irish journalist Andrea Kelly (born 1974), American choreographer, dancer, and actor Jacqueline Kennedy (1929–1994), American socialite and first lady Sue Klebold (born 1949), American author and activist Keira Knightley (born 1985), English actor Alicia Kozakiewicz (born 1988), American motivational speaker and missing persons advocate
L Shia LaBeouf (born 1986), American actor Lady Gaga (born 1986), American singer-songwriter and actor Erika Renee Land (born 1983), American writerMathis, Don. "Veteran Erika Land explores repercussions of war in local performance of ‘PTSD and Me’" OUTinSa. Retrieved November 5, 2015 Ernie LaPointe (born 1948), Lakota author Percival Lancaster (1880–1937), British civil engineer and writer Janet Leach, English social worker Left at London (born 1996), American singer-songwriter Robin Lehner (born 1991), Swedish ice hockey player Primo Levi (1919–1987), Italian Jewish chemist and writerGeorge Jochnowitz, "Review of Primo Levi: A Life by Ian Thomson". New York: Metropolitan Books, Henry Holt and Company, 2003Diego Gambetta, 'Primo Levi's Plunge: A Case Against Suicide,' The New York Times 7 August 1999 Lisa-Jayne Lewis (born 1977), British broadcaster Lawrence Lindell (born 1988), American cartoonist Linda Lovelace (1949–2002), American pornographic actor who became an anti-pornography activist later in life
M Clint Malarchuk (born 1961), Canadian ice hockey player Gabriel Mac, American author and journalist Neil Mackay (born 1969 or 1970), Northern Irish journalist, author, and filmmaker Aimee Mann (born 1960), American singer-songwriter Catherine Mardon, Canadian writer and activist Hans-Joachim Marseille (1919–1942), German Luftwaffe fighter pilot Robert Mason (born 1942), American veteran and author AnnaLynne McCord (born 1987), American actor, model, and activist David McBride (born 1963), Australian soldier and whistleblower who leaked evidence of Australian war crimes during the War in Afghanistan John McGavock Grider (1893–1918), American fighter pilot in WWI Ronnie McNutt (1987–2020), American man who committed suicide on a Facebook livestream Thomas Melville Lunan (1878–?), Scottish architectThomas Melville Lunan - Dictionary of Scottish Architects James Blake Miller (born 1984), American marine who fought in the Iraq WarLuis Sinco, Two lives blurred together by a photo, Los Angeles Times, November 11, 2007. Joseph Daniel Miller (born 1964), American serial killer (according to defense attorney) Sharee Miller (born 1971), American criminal Walter M. Miller Jr. (1923–1996), American science fiction writer"An Appreciation", Joe Haldeman, Locus, February 1996, pp. 78–79. Luis Carlos Montalvan (1973–2016), American soldier and writer Devin Moore (born 1985), American murdererDwyer, Kevin and Fiorillo, Juré. True Stories of Law & Order: SVU. 2007: Berkley/Penguin, page 139. () David Morgan (born 1947), British Navy and RAF pilot Philip Morris (born 1968), English kidnapping victim Seth Moulton (born 1978), American politician Benedict Joseph Murdoch (1886–1973), Canadian priest and writer Audie Murphy (1925–1971), American actor, soldier, and songwriter
N Joseph B. Noil (1841–1882), Canadian-American Navy sailor Brandy Norwood (born 1979), American singer-songwriter, record producer, and model
O Llew O'Brien (born 1972), Australian politician Sinéad O'Connor, (1966–2023), Irish singer-songwriter and activist (complex PTSD) Rasmea Odeh (born 1947 or 1948), Palestinian-Jordanian implicated in the 1969 PFLP bombings in JerusalemWill Rasmea Odeh Go to Prison Because of a Confession Obtained Through Torture? Forty years ago, the Israeli army tortured and imprisoned her. Now she's being forced to relive the nightmare in a US court. By Charlotte Silver. The Nation, November 4, 2014.Philip Weiss Harris wanted to understand How Israel had gone this way,' Mondoweiss 7 February 2020. Chris Opie (born 1987), British cyclist Wilfred Owen (1893–1918), English poet and soldier Alex Owumi (born 1984), Nigerian-American basketball player
P José Padilla (born 1970), American criminal Robert Park (born 1981), American missionary and activist Samuel Pepys (1633–1703), English diarist and naval administrator Rosie Perez (born 1964), American actor, choreographer, and dancer Christa Pike (born 1976), American convicted murderer. Georg-Andreas Pogany (born 1971), German-American soldier and activist Noa Pothoven (2001–2019), Dutch activist and author
Q Ali Shallal al-Qaisi (born 1962), Iraqi detained and tortured in Abu Ghraib prison during American occupation
R James Rhodes (born 1975), British-Spanish pianist and writer Emma Roddick (born 1997), Scottish politician Michele Ross (born 1982), American neuroscientist, author, and media personality