Last week, I had the honor of working with an Iraq war combat veteran who sustained a traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the war and suffered severe flashbacks.Here this guy dedicates his life to fighting for our freedom, and now PTSD had imprisoned him. I was totally dedicated to this mission to fight for his freedom now. Read how we did it here.
Read MoreRecently in the media, there has been so much focus on horror and destruction around our world. Seeing such images over and over again can make us feel helpless. But, aren’t you more uplifted, inspired, and motivated when you hear stories of how people are helping one another, creatively surviving, and coming up with innovative ways to get through these tragedies?
Read MoreTraumatic experiences may not always involve the imminent threat of death, nor even horror and helplessness. What happened to the person may be more on the level of identity and meaning than what happened physically. Read more from Mark Chidley in this post.
Read MoreMartial arts classes may be a good therapy alternative for combat veterans looking to overcome PTSD. Watch this video about a class in San Diego that has been successful.
Read MoreCould we have the potential to “erase” the fear from a traumatic memory soon? Would this relieve PTSD, or cause more problems? Last month, Science Express published research done by Dr. Richard Huganir and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University suggesting we may be able to manipulate fear-based memories. Laboratory rats were conditioned to fear a [...]
Read MoreOne thing that causes a traumatic memory to haunt a person is a distorted meaning he/she attached to the disturbing event. Read about a case in which we cleared the trauma by transforming a meaning the client had attached to the event.
Read MoreShould there be a separate diagnostic category for complex PTSD related to childhood trauma in the DSM-V? Physicians and researchers such as Bessel van der Kolk, MD, Robert Pynoos, MD, and Marylene Cloitre , PhD think so. Over a year ago, these medical professionals formed a task force advocating that a diagnosis called Developmental Trauma [...]
Read MoreTeaching emotional regulation skills seems especially relevant for people who have suffered multiple traumas, as they never really learned how to naturally regulate emotions. Instead they may have used substances, self-injury, sex, shopping, or other compulsive behaviors to regulate distress. Even after we’ve cleared a trauma, they may still not have a good handle on how to cope with other stressors. A recent study by Cloitre and colleagues validates this.
Read MoreDid you know that you don’t have to use EMDR or painful exposure techniques to clear the emotional charge of a traumatic memory? All that is required is keeping the client “emotionally present” as they are describing the details of the event.
Read MoreI am a big fan of neuroscientist and musician, Joseph LeDoux. His band, the Amygdaloids, just released a new album,called Theory of My Mind. Watch this music video of their song “Fearing.”
Read More© 2011 Copyright Courtney Armstrong 2011. All rights reserved. Web Design by Web Marketing Magician
