Methods of Treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Methods of Treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Oscar Guzman

English 1302

D. Glenn Smith

September 14, 2015

The rate at which Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in American soldiers returning from duty occur is alarming. Not just for Soldiers but also for victims that go through traumatic events throughout their life. It is not a surprise that there has been a growing in research to know more about the disorder and to target a better understanding of types of treatment to prevent Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. There are current types of treatment options within reach of the victims to help them move forward. The tasks for treatment toward PTSD are far from simple; they require sensitive, skilled approach and a knowledge of knowing the victims personally and to know what kind of help is needed. Both Gordon J.G. Asmundson, Ph.D. (2014) in his article “The emotional and Physical Pains of Trauma: Contemporary and Innovative approaches for treating co-occurring PTSD and Chronic Pain” and Leslie Morland, PsyD (2015) in “Technology and PTSD Care: An Update:” discuss how it is important to innovate new types of treatments for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and to also use old methods which are mental health professionals, social interventions, online interventions, and even mobile applications that are just beginning to evolve.

There are many treatments for Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, and one of them is using mental health professionals which is psychotherapy. Psychotherapy involves talking with mental health professionals to treat this disorder. This type of treatment is handled in one on one sessions between the patient and a therapist or it could also be in groups. This treatment is not for everyone because there is different kinds of people and different types of traumas. Therefore it is important to seek for professional well rounded therapist who can help in these situations because you may need to try different treatments to find what works best for the patient. So seeking for mental health professional help can teach you many things like information about the disorder and its effects, tips for a better lifestyle for better sleep, diet, and exercise habits, and to focus on changing how you react to your Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms. This treatment usually takes up to 6 to 12 weeks but it can last for a longer time for other patients. Mental health professionals target the symptoms of PTSD directly they focus on helping the patient by reducing the degree to which trauma reminders create your strong emotional responses. Psychotherapy helps the patient restructure their mind to replace negative thoughts with healthy ones. This treatment will help out victims of PTSD because of the mental health professionals that are involved in these cases it might not work out for everyone but this type of treatment definitely has positive intentions.

  A different manner to approach and help out victims of Post-traumatic stress disorder is Clinical Videoconferencing Technology (CVT) is usually used to enhance or expand the reach of clinician delivered psychotherapy. CVT allows patients and their therapist to interact socially online face to face without them being in the same area. It is convenient for both because they do not have to travel to get to their destination and they save time. They could even interact in their own private home. “PTSD therapy delivered by CVT has been studied for both individuals and group treatment and has become progressively more available in a variety of service systems.”(Morland 2015) Studies have shown that CVT can achieve comparable clinical outcomes to in-person therapy meetings and it is considered for a diverse population. In some situations CVT is better for some types of patients that are shy in groups or in person because it helps them relax in their own space and home while still being treated via videoconferencing online. Veterans with PTSD have shown high ratings of attendance and clinical satisfaction with CVT compared to in-person care. Seeing positive results from this program only has researchers trying to gather more information for better results and to help out the victims of these traumatic events.

There are some victims of traumatic events that are not able to access formal treatment but there is a solution to this problem and there some online tools to help these victims out by providing information, screening and self-assessment, intervention, and social support. There are well respected tools that provide information to the victims like using Interapy, My Disaster Recovery, and VetChange online. By using these websites and looking up more information about PTSD online it helps out the victims and the families of victims to gain knowledge about these conditions and comprehend how they are feeling. “Sadler and colleagues tested an online screening and information program designed for female reserve and National Guard troops returning from deployment. Thirty-one percent said using the site made them feel more comfortable seeking mental health care and 42% said they planned to seek mental health treatment.”(Morland 2015) By knowing more about this disorder it helps out the victims to know what kind of treatment they need to be seeking for because there is different types of traumatic events. There are narrative writing intervention for PTSD online which is called Interapy. The victims of PTSD participate in writing exercises for month and week with the help of online therapists. The participants of Interapy interact with the therapist via email and it is very important for the victim to receive feedback after every writing assignment. My Disaster Recovery is an online tool to help improve trauma survivors with their skills and it does not involve any clinical help or does not require any contracts. This online tool helps out the trauma survivor with relaxation, self-talk, social support, trauma triggers, and professional help. Finally another useful websites for veterans that experienced a traumatic event is VetChange which is an online intervention that uses elements of motivational interviewing. There are many options to look for when searching for online interventions and treatments that help out different people in different ways. There is just an online intervention for different types of traumatic events.