Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Treatment

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder which occurs after an individual has personally experienced or witnessed a dangerous and life-threatening event. Individuals who are at risk for developing PTSD include but are not limited to soldiers who have been in combat, survivors or witnesses of violent crimes (including rape, kidnapping, robbery), individuals who have lived through a natural disaster, and survivors of accidents or grave illness.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, (EMDR), is a treatment modality that has been helpful to people, who are suffering from the effects of trauma. After encountering a traumatic event, such as an auto accident, domestic abuse, violence, or perinatal loss, fragmented memories may intrude into daily life. This can result in feelings of helplessness or low self-esteem. Sometimes individuals turn to alcohol or substance abuse, in an effort to decrease the intrusive memories.

When experiencing trauma, the individual is flooded with strong emotions and, consequently, the brain cannot process, organize, and store the information in the usual way. EMDR allows the traumatic event to be fully processed so the individual is freed from re-experiencing the event in everyday life. This may result in a better quality of life and sense of hope and well being.

Judy Redmond, LPC, LLP, CAADC specializes in and discusses EMDR, a highly effective and efficient treatment for trauma and a broad array of other mental health challenges.

These events can cause lasting psychological symptoms, including the following from the National Institute for Mental Health

1) Re-experiencing symptoms: 

- Flashbacks—reliving the trauma over and over, including physical symptoms such as:

- Racing heart or sweating

- Bad dreams

- Frightening thoughts

2) Avoidance symptoms: 

- Staying away from places, events, or objects that are reminders of the experience 

- Feeling emotionally numb Feeling strong guilt, depression, or worry 

- Losing interest in activities that were enjoyable in the past 

- Having trouble remembering the dangerous event

Events that remind a person of the traumatic event can trigger avoidance symptoms. These symptoms may cause a person to change his or her personal routine. For example, after a bad car accident, a person who usually drives may avoid driving or riding in a car.

3) Hyperarousal symptoms: 

- Easily startled

- Feeling tense or “on edge”

- Difficulty sleeping, and/or having angry outbursts

Hyperarousal symptoms may make it hard to do daily tasks, such as sleeping, eating, or concentrating. 

At the Rochester Center for Behavioral Medicine, PTSD is treated with a combination of cognitive-behavioral therapy and when necessary, medications. This effective approach can help individuals with PTSD identify situations that trigger their “fight or flight” response. Using the cognitive-behavioral techniques of flooding and systematic desensitization, the therapist and patient can work together to safely reintroduce situations that have become too anxiety-provoking for the patient. Over time, irritability, flashbacks, and nightmares subside, the patient is able to return to their pre-trauma functionality, and long-term success is highly achievable.