Research on the current problem began with a question that has begun to plague counselors and psychologists in recent years.
Research has found that PTSD treatment, usually a process of debriefing and counseling after a traumatic event has occurred, is usually ineffective in the long term benefit of the victim. Similar research has shown that individuals whom receive debriefing or counseling may still show signs of worsening symptoms over time. This may suggest that some methods of PTSD prevention or intervention are harmful. As a result, many psychologists and others question if PTSD treatment should be reevaluated as a means of prevention.
In order to understand PTDS prevention and intervention, we must first understand why PTSD occurs and understand that it in fact, has everything to do with the social processes and context that a traumatic event occurs in and of course, it’s relative impact on the each individual involved.
As discussed earlier, many of the current PTSD prevention and intervention methods utilize debriefing tactics. Naturally, there are many methods of performing this debriefing; the differences between them have yet to prove more effective than the other. Debriefing techniques have shown to be effective for only a short period of time however, in a majority of cases debriefing, counseling and related therapy is only likely to occur for a short time after a traumatic event has occurred. Further research needs to be conducted to evaluate the possibility of the effectiveness of a long-term debriefing program.
The staggering numbers that recent events have presented us with speak for themselves, there is a tremendous need for further study in methods of PTSD prevention, intervention and treatment.
With such obvious needs for improved methods, it is notable that there are research teams exploring “out-of-the-box” thinking on methods pf PTSD prevention and intervention. Ness and Macaskill found, after interviewing numerous people, that an event that seemingly should have been quite traumatic and possibly causing PTSD symptoms had no such impact on an individual that was able to utilize problem solving skills and situational awareness during the event. The utilization of both skills ultimately also lead to a sort of automatically occurring anxiety management.
Such research suggests applications for military and emergency personnel use, perhaps utilize new technologies to allow a trainee to slowly experience such a traumatic event in a virtual environment, learn key situational awareness and problem solving skills, and later utilize them during a real life event. This method could work in a way similar to the idea that falling out of a boat may be traumatic for an individual that cannot swim, but would simply just be a matter of swimming back to the boat for those who are educated and possess the necessary problem solving skills (swimming) and situational awareness (occurs only for the individual able to swim).
Technology is changing, wartime environments are changing and the environments that emergency personnel find themselves in are changing everyday. In addition the possibility for a civilian to experience a horrifically traumatic event has I increased dramatically in the past decade. Because of these changes, there should be no question that PTSD treatment, intervention and prevention methods require changes as well.
Research began with an important question, and as of current, it ends with an even more important question.
![PTSD Treatment ,[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)