Psychiatry Is Sure To Change As The Psychedelic Revolution Arrives

The Psychedelic Revolution Is Coming.  Psychiatry May Never Be The Same by Andrew Jacobs.  The New York Times.  May 12, 2021.   

Extreme Stress, PTSD Threatens Frontline Medical Workers

'I Can't Turn My Brain Off':  PTSD And Burnout Threaten Medical Workers by Jan Hoffman.  The New York Times.  May 16, 2020.

Combat-Related PTSD Calmed By Yoga Therapy

Combat-Related PTSD Calmed by Yoga Therapy by Annabel Mansfield.  MedicalXpress.  November 8, 2017. 

Emotional Contagion In Dogs: A Therapeutic Tool

The Empathetic Dog by Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi.  The New York Times.  June 4, 2017. 

Wounded Troops Discharged For Misconduct Often Had PTSD or T.B.I

Wounded Troops Discharged For Misconduct Often Had PTSD or T.B.I.  by Dave Philipps. New York Times.  May 16, 2017. 

Cortisol May Have A Role In PTSD Only When Testosterone Levels Are Supressed

PTSD Risk Can Be Predicted By Hormone Levels Prior To Deployment, Study Says.  University of Texas at Austin/Science Daily.  March 7, 2017. 

PTSD May Be More Physical Than Psychological

What If PTSD Is More Physical Than Psychological?  by Robert F. Worth.  The New York Times.  June 10, 2016

Secondary PTSD May Be Suprisingly Common

When PTSD Is Contagious by Aaron Reuben.  The Atlantic.  December 14, 2015. 

New Understanding Of Stress Trigger And Process May Lead to Treatments For PTSD And Depression

'Trigger' For Stress Processes Discovered In The Brain.  Medical University Of Vienna.  Medical Express.  November 27, 2014.

Wounds Of War That Never Heal: A Quarter Of PTSD VA Patients Are Early Wars, Mainly Vietnam

Vets Seek Help For PTSD Decades After War by Clare Ansberry.  The Wall Street Journal.  November 28, 2014.

Mental Costs Of Vietnam War Often Persist For A Lifetime

Combat Stress Among Veterans Is Found To Persist Since Vietnam by Benedict Carey.  The New York Times.  August 7, 2014.

Nightmares After The I.C.U.  by Jan Hoffman.  The New York Times.  July 22, 2013.

(1)  Studies show that about _______ %of I.C.U patients have PTSD symptoms as long as two years after their experience.

(2)  PTSD symptoms are particularly likely after __________________________

(3)  __________ behaviors are an example of the symptoms of P.T.S.D.

(4)  ___________, rather than the patient, sometimes develop symptoms of being traumatized.

(5)  I.C.U P.T.S.D suffers sometimes have horrors that cannot be __________.

(6)  Length of I.C.U stay increases the risk of _________________.

(7)  True or False:  Men are more at risk for P.T.S.D obtained in intensive care than are women.

(8)  ____________ patients may be more likely to develop symptoms of PTSD than elderly patients.

(9)  The most harrowing fashbacks in the I.C.U come from ____________.

(10)  The Society of Critical Care Medicine recommends treating _________ first then use sedatives such as benzodiazepines later if need for __________.

(11)  PTSD from the I.C.U may take up to a __________ for recovery.

(12)  Giving family members things to do will _____________________.

(13)  An I.C.U. diary serves as a __________________

(14)  What are two hospitals mentioned in the article that focus on the challenges of the post-IC.U. patient?

PTSD And The Boston Marathon Bombing

PTSD May Strike Bostonians In Bombing, Lockdown Aftermath by Liz Neporent.  ABC News.  April 23, 2013.

Among the reasons making this article worth reading is a discussion of how social media and government appeals for citizen involvement perhaps may reduced the traumatic effects of the event by giving people a sense of control and participation.

Family Watching Attempts At Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Leads To Less PTSD Later

Should Family Members Watch As Their Dying Loved Ones Get CPR? by Karen Kaplan.  The Lost Angeles Times.  March 13, 2013.

The study published in the New England Journal Of Medicine found that family members who observed the last attempts to revive a loved one were 70% less likely to suffer PTSD three months later.

Emotions, PTSD Connected With Cardiovascular Risk Markers

Stress, PTSD Seen As Risk Factors For Heart Disease.  Associated Press.  March 11, 2013.

Higher rates of cardiac problems were found in veterans with PTSD, Katrina victims, and Greeks suffering from the financial turmoil gripping their country.  The trend is clear more stress, the more heart risk.

Study Objective: Specific Biomarkers For PTSD

Study Seeks Biomarkers For Invisible War Scars by James Dao.  The New York Times.  February 6, 2013.

Aiming to elevate mental health to standard physical health, the research team is hoping to recruit 1,500 subjects.  The subjects will undergo a variety of tests for hormone levels, blood chemistry, genetic makeup, brain structure, and voice.  Some will receive an MRI while others will test a theory involving the thalamus.  The lead researcher wants to be able to test biologically for mental health phenomena.

The Narrative Of PTSD

Warrior Voices:  Veterans Learn To Write The Words They Could Not Speak by Cecilia Capuzi Simon.

Those veterans with PTSD are discovering that, while some traditional therapies do not always work, writing sometimes offers help.  This insight is built upon the psychological knowledge that writing is therapeutic.  Writing forces the veteran to structure the traumatic experience and thereby obtain some control over it.

The Moral Link to PTSD

Column:  PTSD, The Moral Dimensions by Warren Kinghorn.  USA Today.  November 11, 2012.

In this column a Veterans Administration psychiatrist calls attention to the role of personal actions in contributing to the severity of PTSD.  PTSD is not merely a matter of what happened to a soldier but what they did that may have violated their own personal moral or ethical core beliefs.  In addition the author emphasizes that the cure to PTSD is not merely "technical" but also requires a supportive community that offers the "non-medical language of confession, repentance, and forgiveness."

Alternative Treatments for Veterans Trauma

For Veterans, A Surge of New Treatments for Trauma  by Tina Rosenburg.  The New York Times.  September 26, 2012

Suicide is the leading cause of death in the army.  With rate rising and with 38 suicides in July 2012, officials are identifying causal factors and implementing new approaches.

The most prominent factor is post-traumatic stress disorder.  In Afghanistan, with repeated tours and improvised explosive devices, experts believe that there will be more PTSD.  Treatments include cognitive therapy and prolonged exposure which helps the soldier view the trauma differently.  These approaches work with about 40% of the service members.

To deal with the rest mental health is being integrated into primary care with screening to identify suffers of PTSD, depression, sleep disorders, and substance abuse.  With this effort is a program to deal with the stigma of of therapy.  Staffs are being expanded and outreach programs are being implemented.  Group sessions are helpful for some.  Alternative therapies are being tried.

Among those alternative therapies include yoga, acupuncture, and Buddhist meditation.  In one integrated program guided visual imagery, biofeedback, self-awareness, dance, self-expression, and drawing has shown results and promise.  Drop-out rates for alternative therapy programs are virtually zero.