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Tag Archive for: MBSR

Posts

Healing therapies for PTSD

Moving Beyond Trauma: Healing Therapies for PTSD

June 21, 2023/in Mental Health, Treatments/by Kaplan Center

According to the U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs, it is estimated that approximately 6% of the population will experience Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) at some point in their lives. By some estimates, that percentage more than doubles for people who have been exposed to a traumatic event.

To be diagnosed with PTSD one must meet a specific set of criteria which includes:

  • exposure to a traumatic stressor;
  • a re-experiencing of symptoms (physical and/or emotional);
  • avoidance behavior and emotional numbness;
  • hyperarousal;
  • symptom duration of at least one month; and
  • significant distress or impairment of functioning.

How does one move beyond this emotional pain, or provide support to the most vulnerable population, our children? The following 3 therapies have shown to be effective in treating PTSD in clinical settings for both adults and children.

Family or Couples Therapy

PTSD is a family illness. Family members often experience feelings of guilt, sadness, and isolation when a loved one is suffering. A safe setting where emotions, fears, and concerns can be communicated under the guidance of a therapist can help strengthen relationships and promote group healing during difficult times.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

MBSR is a program that uses meditation, breathing techniques, and movement, such as yoga, to bring awareness to the present moment, without judgment. There is a growing body of medical research that shows that a mindfulness-based meditation practice can help people bounce back after highly stressful situations.

  • A 2015 study reported that veterans suffering from PTSD who participated in a mindfulness-based stress reduction program for a period of 8 weeks, reported a decrease in symptom severity.
  • A 2018 review confirmed that mindfulness-bases therapies are “effective in reducing PTSD symptomatology” and indicated that additional studies should be done to investigate its role as a first line treatment.
  • Children can also benefit from the practice. This 2017 review of research concluded that “high-quality, structured mindfulness interventions improve mental, behavioral, and physical outcomes in youth.”

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy

EMDR is an integrative psychotherapy that has proven highly effective for the treatment of trauma. Traumatic memories are memories that tend to be “frozen in time” and each time they are triggered a person may re-experience the same disturbing sights, sounds, smells, feelings, and sensations suffered during the original event. Traumatic memories have a long-lasting impact because they change core beliefs that we hold about ourselves and the world around us.

EMDR helps the brain adaptively process traumatic information by replicating what naturally happens during dreaming or REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. During EMDR therapy, a person is asked to bring a difficult thought or memory to mind, holding it in awareness, while also following the therapist’s hand movements across the field of vision, mimicking the biological process of REM sleep. Over time, though an event may remain as a bad memory, it eventually ceases to be a physiological stressor, because the person has learned to experience disturbing events or memories in a new and less distressing way.

Left unresolved, PTSD can be devastating, but with appropriate support, there are ways to move beyond the pain. If you or a loved one may be affected, please seek help – no one needs to suffer alone.

Additional Resources:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline –24-hour hotline for anyone in emotional distress: 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) – Helpline: 1-800-950-NAMI (6264)
TRE® – Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercise methods by Dr. David Berceli
Veterans Crisis Line –  For veterans and their families and friends: 1-800-273-8255

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

This article was published in May 2017. It was reviewed and updated in June 2023.

 

Coping With the Emotional Impact of Cancer

October 12, 2015/in Mental Health, Wellness/by Jodi Brayton, LCSW

Receiving a cancer diagnosis can be a profoundly stressful event in a person’s life. According to NIH’s National Cancer Institute, there are over 18 million Americans living with – or have survived – some form of cancer. The emotional blow of the diagnosis, combined with the pain and discomfort of the disease and treatment, can impact one’s ability to work, provide financially for dependents, or engage in social and recreational activities. Surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation treatment can cause unwanted changes in a patient’s physical appearance and self-esteem, undermine his or her ability to relate to loved ones emotionally or sexually, and lead to an increased sense of isolation and depression. Often, the diagnosis and the reality of living with cancer challenge an individual’s spiritual beliefs, their sense of purpose, and their life priorities.

Given the scope of cancer’s effect upon a person’s life, ideally, the treatment should not be focused only on the physical aspects of healing. It is estimated that as many as 65 percent of cancer patients seek complementary therapies to augment the conventional medical care they are receiving. Medical research has demonstrated that interventions such as psychotherapy, relaxation, prayer, meditation, and massage can reduce stress, improve sleep, encourage a sense of optimism, and boost the body’s immune response.

Here are 4 alternative therapies that, when used in conjunction with conventional medical care, can enhance the quality of patients’ lives by helping them to cope more effectively with the effects of cancer and its treatment:

Questions? Give Us a Call!

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Psychotherapy can help patients find the inner strength they need to cope more positively with their diagnosis. Talking about their feelings with a qualified and caring professional, and receiving ongoing emotional support can help reduce the sense of isolation, anxiety, and hopelessness that cancer patients commonly experience. There are many different kinds of psychotherapy; some patients meet individually with a counselor, others meet in a group setting to discuss common problems and coping strategies.

EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is a relatively new protocol used by some psychotherapists that can facilitate a remarkably swift and permanent healing of negative and distressing thoughts and feelings. It can also alleviate certain types of physical pain that have become “locked into” the memory of a person’s central nervous system.

Guided Imagery is a process where patients use their minds to visualize and sense soothing experiences, like the sight of a favorite place, or the feeling of warm sun on the skin or cool water on the toes. Guided imagery and hypnosis can help channel the power of a person’s own mind to produce real physiological benefits for the body, including boosting the immune response, reducing blood pressure, increasing the sense of well-being, and even decreasing the pain of cancer and cancer treatment.

Mind-Body Stress Reduction Programs help patients learn stress management and meditation techniques. Medical studies show that mind-body meditation can improve a patient’s mood, coping skills, and quality of life. It also can boost a patient’s immune response and help to alleviate disease-and-treatment-related symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and pain. Meditation programs have proven to be so successful in improving patient outcomes that they have become a reimbursable medical service under many health insurance plans.


Additional Resources:

Psychotherapy, EMDR, and Guided Meditation

We are here for you, and we want to help.

Our goal is to return you to optimal health as soon as possible. To schedule an appointment please call: 703-532-4892 x2

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