Exposure Therapy: Why Revisit the Past?
Posted on: March 26th, 2014
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) refers to a suite of symptoms that affects individuals traumatized by an event or series of events. Most often, people associate PTSD with veterans of war returning home after combat. However, PTSD can impact anyone who has undergone a scarring experience such as a natural disaster or sexual abuse as a child. It manifests itself in an array of symptoms, both physical and mental. People that suffer from PTSD can experience depression, anxiousness, be prone to outbursts or even exhibit physical symptoms like extreme jumpiness or recurring nightmares. PTSD can even lead to avoidance behavior whereby the person learns to eliminate any reminders of the event, locations associated with the incident, or even individuals connected to the trauma. The psychological, physical or avoidance responses can disrupt normal life; therefore, it’s critical that those with PTSD seek treatment.
One treatment approach that yields excellent results is exposure therapy. It’s a cognitive behavior technique which reintroduces imagery or memories of the event in a systematic way. In so doing, exposure therapy helps the sufferer of PTSD learn a new set of coping skills as the exposure slowly increases. Part of the issue with PTSD is that when triggered, the body learns a set of reaction behaviors such as avoidance, and exposure therapy works to retrain the person to mentally and physically react in a different way. The reintroduction and counseling surrounding the difficult memories is done in a graduated way. Slowly, the exposure to the trigger increases and the sufferer of PTSD becomes desensitized and increases his or her own coping skills.
In an excellent article that I referred to back in September 2013, “Virtual Reality Helps Veterans with PTSD,” boston.com discusses how technology is now being used to help create virtual reality scenarios that replicate traumatic events. Technology platforms assist with the reproduction of important imagery and exposure therapy works to build up the coping skill of the PTSD sufferer. Particularly for veterans of war, it can be quite challenging to replicate an exposure to the disturbing event in any meaningful way. With the help of technology, exposure therapy can begin to cross this hurdle for the first time.
The success rate of exposure therapy is well-documented, although the treatment does not work for everyone. Researchers have confirmed that exposure therapy can help a person suppress memories of traumatic events, and it can also train the brain to remodel its response when exposed. Exposure therapy also targets avoidance behaviors which can actually worsen PTSD symptoms. With systematic exposure, a person can slowly return to normalized patterns of behavior that do not include the avoidance reaction.
If you believe you’re suffering from PTSD, Maureen Kritzer-Lange Psychotherapy can implement a treatment program that brings you relief – including referral to an exposure therapy specialist on our team. Contact Maureen Kritzer-Lange Psychotherapy at info@maureenkritzerlange.com, (973) 313-1691.
Leave a Reply