Most people find that some type of therapy is important in healing from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). There are a variety of therapeutic methods that have been found useful.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy can be particularly helpful in dealing with flashbacks; it teaches relaxation and ways to change thoughts that are troubling.

Some people have found that newer treatments, such as eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) and emotional freedom therapy (EFT) help with more immediate relief of symptoms.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy has also been found to be extremely helpful, often in conjunction with some of the other types, particularly if the symptoms are a result of childhood trauma.

When children are traumatized, they often become frozen in time developmentally. While they mature physically, there may be some emotional and social areas in which they have difficulty.

Psychodynamic treatment can aid in healing those early wounds and help the individual make up for what was lost.

In addition to those treatments already mentioned, some people find medications helpful to alleviate the anxiety and/or depression that you ma be experiencing.

Many people also find that becoming part of a support group is also helpful. The local social service agency or blue pages in the telephone book will likely have some leads.

Additionally, some people are helped by becoming involved in things that bring meaning to their life. Taking a class, working on crafts, and/or doing some volunteer work may help someone get through the days in a meaningful way as they work to resolve the PTSD symptoms.

Hope Makes Healing Possible!

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

It can be difficult for the people in your life to acknowledge that you have been traumatized.

Often they will try to cope with their feelings of helplessness by denying or being blind to what you are trying to tell them. They may also be feeling angry at whatever or whoever hurt you, but don't know what to do with their anger.

There are lots of educational materials available on PTSD.

Your local social service agency may have some, or you can find some online. After reviewing them yourself, select a couple that best represents your own situation.

Then, I'd suggest selecting one or two people with whom you are the closest and let them know you have something important to discuss with them.

Tell them you want them to just listen and then you will answer any questions they may have.

You can then share with them the information you have selected. Let them know how they can help you. They can't read your mind (although it would sure be easier if they could!).

Perhaps you need some time alone or maybe you would prefer to have company. Some types of touch might be difficult for you; others might be soothing. Only you know what you need from them; try to let them know what that might be.

Be as patient as you can with them. I know it's hard to expect you to do that when you are the one who has been hurt, but it's important to keep the goal in mind, which is to have them understand you and your situation.

If you are in therapy, it might be helpful to ask them to come with you to a session or two so that your therapist can help them understand. There are also support groups available for those who have experienced trauma as well as those whose loved ones have been traumatized.

Hope Makes Healing Possible!

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

I recently received a question from someone with PTSD who expressed concern that she got confused when under pressure, especially while studying.

She wanted to further her education, but was worried she wouldn't be able to succeed.

Here's my response to her:

Taking a break is an excellent thing to do when you're feeling overwhelmed. Some people find that meditation or some pleasurable activity that can be done in a short amount of time helps them calm down enough to tackle the work again.

There are a lot of support groups listed online; if you go to Google and put in "PTSD support groups," you'll find many that are online as well as some that are offline.

Many communities have a listing of local support groups that might be of help.

Also, I'd suggest contacting whatever schools you might be considering attending and finding out what support services they have in place to help students with similar problems.

Hope Makes Healing Possible!

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

Sometimes people wonder if traumatic memories can be repressed.

I'll talk about this in future blog entries, but I will give a brief overview now.

It is very possible for the mind to block out memory of the trauma as a way to try to protect the person from feeling overwhelmed.

Usually, however, even when conscious memories of the traumatic event(s) are not present, there are signs and symptoms that could suggest that something is wrong.

Sometimes people have problems with substance abuse, eating disorders, self-mutilation, anxiety, and/or depression.

It's important to know, though, that not everyone who experiences these difficulties is repressing a traumatic event. There can be many reasons for these behaviors.

In my experience, when someone reconnects to the memories of trauma, things start to make sense.

Often people will say something like, "Now I understand why I always felt uncomfortable when I drove down that street."

 Certain smells or places may have inexplicably caused discomfort.

Once the memories have been retrieved, people are able to understand thoughts and feelings they have had for years.

 Treatment can then consist of helping the person heal from the trauma and come to terms with what happened.

Hope Makes Healing Possible!

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

While psychoanalysis is not often thought of as the treatment of choice for PTSD, it may be helpful.

It would rarely be used by itself for the treatment of trauma. It might be used, however, in conjunction with other modalities, such as cognitive behavioral therapy or EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing).

Psychoanalysis, or some form of psychodynamic treatment, would be most helpful for those who have had extensive trauma, particularly trauma that occurred in childhood.

When children are traumatized, they often become frozen in time developmentally. While they mature physically, there may be some emotional and social areas in which they have difficulty.

Psychodynamic treatment can aid in healing those early wounds and help the individual make up for what was lost.

Hope Makes Healing Possible!

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

Recovery time from PTSD varies greatly.

Reasons for this include the type of trauma, age at which the trauma occurred, whether the trauma was a single or repeated event, response of others around the traumatized person, and how soon after the trauma treatment was obtained.

Unfortunately, some people do not recover from PTSD. In an attempt to cope with the aftermath of the trauma and the symptoms of PTSD, they may turn to substances and/or develop a severe depression that can lead to death.

Even people with severe PTSD, however, can recover if they receive the proper treatment.

I am aware of someone who was repetitively and severely abused sexually and physically from ages 3-18; her successful treatment extended over a period of 15 years.

Hope Makes Healing Possible!

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

People often ask how to get past a trauma.

The natural human tendency is to try to ignore or forget both the trauma and its aftermath.

Unfortunately, trying to do that will generally create more difficulty.

The best way past it is to go through the healing process. Often that involves talking about and, perhaps, re-experiencing some of the pain.

True healing comes from rooting out the causes of the pain, not from covering it over.

It’s a bit like healing from third degree burns. The top layers of skin form fairly quickly, but they then need to be removed in order to allow the lower layers to heal. Healing must come from the inner layers so that infection does not cause serious complications.

This debriding (removal of the top layers of skin) is extremely painful. But without going through that pain, the body cannot truly heal.

Healing from emotional wounds often must follow a similar path. There are some therapeutic techniques, such as EMDR (eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing) and EFT (emotional freedom therapy) that can help one go through this process more quickly and with less pain.

I’m considering developing a series of teleseminars dealing with several different ways to heal from PTSD. These teleseminars would include experts on EMDR, EFT, psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral approaches.

Please let me know if this would interest you and which specific intervention techniques you would like me to include.

Hope Makes Healing Possible

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

Traumatic brain injury (TBI), also called acquired brain injury or simply head injury, occurs when a sudden trauma causes damage to the brain. TBI can result when the head suddenly and violently hits an object, or when an object pierces the skull and enters brain tissue.

Symptoms of a TBI can be mild, moderate, or severe, depending on the extent of the damage to the brain.

A person with a mild TBI may remain conscious or may experience a loss of consciousness for a few seconds or minutes. Other symptoms of mild TBI include headache, confusion, lightheadedness, dizziness, blurred vision or tired eyes, ringing in the ears, bad taste in the mouth, fatigue or lethargy, a change in sleep patterns, behavioral or mood changes, and trouble with memory, concentration, attention, or thinking.

A person with a moderate or severe TBI may show these same symptoms, but may also have a headache that gets worse or does not go away, repeated vomiting or nausea, convulsions or seizures, an inability to awaken from sleep, dilation of one or both pupils of the eyes, slurred speech, weakness or numbness in the extremities, loss of coordination, and increased confusion, restlessness, or agitation.

See the following website for more information: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/tbi/tbi.htm

The brain can also be damaged from emotional trauma. There is some evidence from PET scans that the brains of those who have PTSD look different from those of people without PTSD. Also, after successful therapy, the brains of those with PTSD look more like those who never had PTSD.

This speaks to the probability that the trauma itself caused changes in the brain. Similar evidence has been found in PET scans of infants who have experienced severe neglect. I wouldn't say that the symptoms one sees in severe neglect or PTSD were symptoms of the brain damage itself, although it is possible that they are. There is just not enough evidence at this point to prove it.

Hope Makes Healing Possible!

Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW

The anniversary of 9/11 may trigger the feelings of fear and danger that originally occurred in 2001.

Even those who have been treated successfully for PTSD may find that their symptoms are re-awakened by the anniversary. This may be especially true as the images are replayed on television and over the internet. It can be difficult to avoid reminders of the traumatic event.

Some people may be surprised to have PTSD symptoms reactivated even when their original stressor was not 9/11. Whenever there is another trauma, either personal or societal, there may well be an emotional reaction similar to that which occurred in response to the initial trauma.