Are you or a loved one suffering from PTSD? Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that is developed after a person is exposed to a terrifying event like war, sexual abuse, or an accident. Its usual symptoms include flashbacks, nightmares, intrusive thoughts, trouble falling asleep, lack of concentration, angry outbursts, depression, and severe anxiety.
These symptoms usually start within a month of the event and can sometimes be triggered years later too. Their intensity can vary with time and situation. They affect your ability to perform normal day-to-day activities and the symptoms can be recurring. In many cases, untreated PTSD even harms relationships, career, and academic performance. So seeking help immediately is important to make a faster recovery.
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What Are The Most Effective Treatments For PTSD?
These symptoms usually start within a month of the event and can sometimes be triggered years later too. Their intensity can vary with time and situation. They affect your ability to perform normal day-to-day activities and the symptoms can be recurring. In many cases, untreated PTSD even harms relationships, career, and academic performance. So seeking help immediately is important to make a faster recovery.
Unsurprisingly, PTSD is more common for military personnel than for the general population, and high rates of PTSD have been found in veterans who have served in recent wars and conflicts. If this illness or disability is a line-of-duty disability then compensation may be due. With this in mind, Stone Rose Law has a useful VA disability calculator for veterans suffering from PTSD to help calculate compensation that they could be entitled to.
While there is no cure for PTSD, there are treatments that can help people manage their symptoms. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some of the most effective treatments for PTSD and centers for PTSD treatment in Austin, Tx.
Different Types Of Treatments For PTSD
1. Medications
There are no medications that have been specifically designed to treat PTSD. But there are several medications used to treat other psychiatric conditions such as mood and anxiety disorders that help manage PTSD symptoms.
The most popular medications for PTSD are SSRIs( like Zoloft and Prozac), types of medication that help with symptoms of depression and anxiety.
SNRIs(Effexor) are usually used for the treatment of depression caused due to PTSD
Apart from these, other medications like sleep medications are used to help deal with insomnia.
2. Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is another popular treatment that is effective in treating PTSD. There are a variety of psychotherapy techniques that can be used in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a type of talk therapy that focuses on how you process your thoughts and emotions regarding the event. It can be done individually or in a group based on every case. The aim is to help you gain control of your thoughts and process and learn tricks to direct negative thoughts away.
Cognitive processing therapy is a specific type of CBT that focuses on how your traumatic event is perceived and how you can cope with the emotional thoughts.
EMDR
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing is a type of psychotherapy that utilizes side-to-side eye movements to help you process difficult memories and emotions related to your trauma event. The EMDR Healing website offers more information about the benefits of EMDR therapy for a variety of traumas and can also connect you with a qualified therapist.
Exposure Therapy.
This is a type of psychotherapy where the patient is asked to remember memories of the traumatic events and feelings gradually. This helps them understand that avoiding the memories is not healthy and that memories themselves won’t pose any danger. By facing their fears, they can lead healthy life once again.
3. Ketamine Therapy
Originally used as an anesthetic, ketamine infusion is an emerging treatment option for mental health disorders like bipolar disorder, depression, and PTSD. In ketamine therapy, a very low dose of ketamine is administered intravenously which is safe for patients with mental health conditions.
The therapy is conducted in a series of infusion sessions spread over a few weeks. But the effects are visible with the first infusion which makes Ketamine the faster treatment to treat PTSD symptoms.
Infusions are given only by trained medical professionals approved to administer this form of treatment. Research is still ongoing on this but so far it shows that just one infusion treatment for approximately 40 minutes can lead to a rapid reduction of PTSD symptoms.
Which Treatment Should You Choose?
Every individual with PTSD has different symptoms and needs. Hence the treatment plan has to be customized after a proper diagnosis.
You can consult your family physician to start with who can then recommend you to a mental health care expert.
They can perform a psychological evaluation and physical exam to learn about your symptoms to form a diagnosis and then choose to treat with psychotherapy, education, ketamine, or a combination of them all.
Ketamine has been effective even in cases where patients have been resistant to medication. So if you are not seeing results, you may talk to your mental health provider to consider ketamine therapy. It even helps reduce chronic pain and suicidal thoughts so it is a great option for severe depression caused by PTSD.
Austin Ketamine Specialists is a good depression treatment center in Austin for ketamine Therapy. Run by Dr. Paul Foster, the clinic works with mental health care providers to administer ketamine therapy to patients with mental health disorders or even chronic pain.
Not everyone is a good candidate for ketamine therapy though. So you can book a complimentary consultation with them to explore the benefits of the treatment for your case.
So call up Austin Ketamine Specialists to get the best treatment for PTSD and lead a healthy full, life once again.
