Amber Heard PTSD score under scrutiny after Iraq war veteran's tweet goes viral

Amber Heard's PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) score by her expert psychologist witness in the trial, Dr. Dawn Hughes, is under further scrutiny after an Iraq war veteran commented on it.

On Thursday, May 26, army vet Kurt Myers claimed that Heard had scored higher than him in the PTSD test, a revelation that has since been retweeted by over 13,000 users.

Earlier, Depp's expert witness, forensic psychologist Dr. Shannon Curry, also refuted the claims of Dr. Hughes. Dr. Curry claimed that Dr. Hughes "misrepresented the tests and results" she used to make her evaluation.

Meanwhile, Dr. Hughes said, "Dr Curry seems confused" over the three sets of tests used by forensic psychologists to evaluate PTSD.

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What did Iraq war veteran Kurt Myers say about Amber Heard's PTSD score?

Myers took to his Twitter on May 26 to express his opinion about Heard's PTSD score. In his tweet, Myers claimed to have PTSD owing to his military service in Iran. The veteran further stated how he was disabled and lost a friend during his tenure in the military.

The tweet read:

"I am a disabled combat veteran that lost a close friend in Iraq in 2005. Amber Heard scored much higher than me on her PTSD test, according to Dr. Hughes."

Myers further pointed out how Heard scores more on her PTSD test than him. In the tweet's replies, this opinion was scrutinized by those who suggested that he should not compare the claimed trauma suffered by both of them.

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Amber Heard's alleged PTSD: Claims explored

During the trial, Dr. Hughes provided testimony on how the Aquaman star suffered from PTSD. She said:

"I diagnosed Ms Heard with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder… and the cause was the intimate partner violence by Mr Depp."

Meanwhile, Dr. Curry claimed that Heard exaggerated much of her claims about PTSD. The psychologist further added that Heard claimed to have 19 of the core 20 symptoms of the disorder and how "even someone with the most severe form of PTSD" would not behave like the 36-year-old actress.

Later, Dr. Shannon Curry revisited her claims after Dr. Hughes' testimony. Dr. Curry refuted the allegations made by Heard's expert witness and stated:

"Generally speaking, there are three main categories I'd like to talk about today…The first is that Dr Hughes misrepresented the tests and the results she utilised in the evaluations. She misrepresented my testing and the results I obtained in my evaluation. And she provided testimony in a manner that presented her own opinions and the self-report of Ms Heard as facts."

Earlier, Dr. Hughes had stated that she used the CAPS 5 assessment to diagnose Heard with the disorder. At the time, Depp's legal team alleged some inconsistencies in the assessment and pointed out that Heard had been diagnosed with PTSD even before the test was administered.

The psychologist disclosed how she "evaluated Amber Heard over six visits for approximately 29 hours during her recent rebuttal."

In contrast, Dr. Curry reportedly analyzed the medical records of Amber Heard and claimed to have met her twice in December 2021. According to the claims of Depp's expert psychologist, Dr. Hughes used a checklist method to see if Heard had PTSD. She added:

"If you're handing someone a checklist that lists every symptom of PTSD, you're essentially teaching them all the little nuances that we're looking for to give that diagnosis."

Meanwhile, Dr. Hughes refuted Dr. Shannon Curry's claims in her rebuttal and said:

"We have forensic assessment instruments, those are the instruments that are very neatly tied to a legal criteria, those are most notably done in a criminal court… The next level are forensically relevant instruments… the third category are clinical assessment instruments."

Due to the psychologists' conflicting opinions involved in the Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard defamation case, it is unclear whether the actress has PTSD. This also creates concerns over the assessment of Heard and her PTSD score.

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