Accelerated Resolution Therapy ( Art ) Essay

Spitalnick, Josh. Difede, JoAnn. Rizzo, Albert. O. Rothbaum, Barbara. “Emerging treatments for PTSD” Clinical Psychology Review, Volume 29, Issue 8, December 2009, Pages 715-726, ISSN 0272-7358, Web. 21 April 2016

Posttraumatic stress disorder can occur after someone experiences a traumatic event. Once the mind hits the coping threshold, it is imperative to seek professional help. The VA offers evidence-based treatments, individual, group treatments, and medications. Coping mechanisms range from individual to individual, hence the need for a diverse PTSD program. Under the evidence-based treatment there are two sections: prolonged exposure therapy and cognitive processing therapy. Prolonged exposure therapy is when someone continues to talk about their fears/trauma to gain control of feelings associated with those fears. The cognitive processing therapy is to understand the feelings associated with trauma and finding a way to replace negative feelings with positive

In the United States (US) posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects 8 out of every 100 persons (United States Department of Veterans Affairs [USDVA], 2015). In which account for about 8 million people that include the military veterans (USDVA, 2015). About 10% of women and 4% of men will develop PTSD during some course of their lives (USDVA, 2015). Veterans are more susceptible to PTSD due to longer exposures to trauma, danger, or witness a violent life threaten incidence during their military service periods (USDVA, 2015). The development of PTSD becomes chronic after no longer seeing or under the “fight-or-flight“ experiences causing a psychological and/ or mental breakdown (National Institutes of Health [NIH], n.d). Such

Although American service members have felt the lasting effects of combat throughout the history of the nation, it was not until 1980 that Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder was formally added to the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Once referred to as “irritable heart” or “shell-shock,” PTSD made its way into the national spotlight in the years following the wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan due to U.S. military members having difficulty reintegrating into civilian life. High rates of suicide, depression, and elevated levels of violent crime within the veteran community made the need to find an effective treatment of this disorder a top priority for the Veterans Health Administration. While it is widely accepted by medical professionals that there is no single, definitive cure for PTSD, many different methods have been cultivated within the past 15 years that make coping with it an easier process; some to a greater extent than others. While medications, namely antidepressants and benzodiazepines, usually find themselves at the forefront of any discussion regarding mental debilitation, they are not a one-size-fits-all solution to the problems that combat veterans face. As this particular disorder is attached to a certain memory or traumatic occurrence, alternative methods of rehabilitation such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Prolonged Exposure (PE) have also shown promise in

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a commonly recognized stress disorder found in many combat soldiers after exposure to life-threatening and traumatic experiences. Since 2001, the prevalence of PTSD has increased with over 2.4 million troops deployed to warzones in Afghanistan and Iraq (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2012). Although researchers and civilians commonly understand symptoms of PTSD, they often fail to recognize the difficulties veterans’ face- reintegration into civilian society, alienation, and identity crises (Demers, 2011). Currently there exist two major sources for best practice guidelines in the management of PTSD. They include the VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines for Management of Post-traumatic

Post-traumatic stress disorder is considered as a psychiatric disorder that creates impairments in occupational, interpersonal, and social functioning. Although there are several treatment processes for veterans suffering from this condition, some intervention may fail to generate desired results. Veterans who fail to show appropriate recovery should be supported with an alternative treatment plan (Aurora et al., 2010). Veterans develop the condition because of exposure to traumatizing

To conclude, Kristen Walter neither confirmed nor denied if one treatment program was better than the other. She stated that both outpatient and residential programs can be beneficial to veterans with PTSD, but the treatment program that works best may depend on the severity of their symptoms. In the article “Cognitive Processing Therapy for Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Comparison Between Outpatient and Residential Treatment”, Kristen Walter evaluates the treatment success in outpatient and inpatient programs for veterans with

To effectively treat Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD in combat Veterans and service members, therapists use different techniques, which are preceded by addressing any underlying pain associated with the disorder. In their research, Chard et al. (2011) reported significant modifications to the CPT protocol for use with patients in a TBI-PTSD residential treatment facility, including increasing the number of sessions per week, combining group and individual therapy, and augmenting the treatment with cognitive rehabilitation. However, their research was marred with the use of few participants which provides doubts regarding the outcome of the proposed treatment procedures. Moreover, the researchers do not state with certainty as to the

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a condition that causes anxiety and distress due to an extremely terrifying event. PTSD occurs in people who have experienced an event that is life-threatening, terrifying to include seeing someone they personally know or don’t know endure death (Kalat, 2013, p. 383). Recently the Veterans Affairs Administration (VA) has seen significant rises in diagnosing and treating PTSD sufferers in returning combat soldier from Iraq and Afghanistan. According to the National Center for PTSD out of 100 veterans 20 are likely to return with PTSD symptoms (Veterans Affairs Administration, 2010). This is out of the roughly two million soldiers that have fought in the Iraq and Afghanistan war. It is noteworthy that

Per the research (Sharp & Barber, 2011; Institute of Medicine, 2007), effective treatments are available. However, there are such a variety of approaches to treatment that is necessary to determine which ones are effective based upon empirical evidence. Garcia (2011) reported that there are now approximately 1.8 million veterans that have served for the United States over centuries. Frequent rates of veterans returning from the Iraq War with PTSD are high. One study found as many as 21.8% of veterans who have accessed Veterans Health Administration healthcare services between 2002 and 2008 were diagnosed with PTSD (Seal, 2009). Another study that as many as 68.2% of Iraq veterans who accessed one Department of Veterans Affairs(VA) Poly-trauma Network Site were given a PTSD diagnosis

The type of study conducted in this article was a correlation. The study examined the correlation of veterans who received individual psychotherapy from a provider trained in CPT or PE and the initiation and completion of evidence-based psychotherapy (EBP). Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is when the veteran or active serving soldier learns skills to understand how trauma changed their thoughts and feelings. Prolonged Exposure therapy (PE) is another type of therapy, but (PE) is where veterans talk about their trauma repeatedly until memories are no longer upsetting.

Veterans who have been deployed to combat and endured trauma display higher levels of emotional distress and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Yarvis, 2013). Moreover, the exposure to traumatic events over the lifespan relates to issues that impact the individual by a wide range of mental health problems (Briere & Scott, 2012). The VA offers a vast majority of mental health services, however there are particular interventions that are not offered because there aren’t enough medical practitioners certified or exposed to certain therapies. With respect to the patient, this paper will discuss an unsuccessful treatment plan that would have prospered had the veteran underwent an alternative route of interventions. Although a medical team follows the veteran, her PTSD symptoms continue to affect her day-to-day life.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is now believed to be a common condition for many active military and veterans who have experienced direct combat. PTSD symptoms can last a lifetime, and are particularly troubling for those veterans from the Vietnam War who have struggled for years to get help (Daniels, Boehnlein, & McCallion, 2015). Bergman, Przeworski &Feeny (2017) note that active military personnel and veterans constitute about half of the overall population, but have a disproportionate number of mental health problems including instances of PTSD. The authors also observe that “ many military veterans and service members may experience symptoms of psychological disorders as well as impairment related to these symptoms, but may

Group interventions for trauma-related psychoeducation and social support may also provide a benefit (Defense Centers of Excellence, 2015). The first line of treatment for PTSD should include an evidence-based psychotherapy (i.e., talk therapy) and/or psychopharmacology (the study of drug-induced changes in mood, thinking, and behavior). The psychotherapies with the most evidence typically include one or more of several productive therapeutic approaches including exposure to traumatic memories, stimuli or situations; cognitive restructuring of trauma-related beliefs; and stress reduction techniques. “The table below summarizes effective PTSD psychotherapy approaches detailed in Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense (VA/DoD) clinical practice guidelines. These treatments should be considered the first line of treatment for patients with PTSD” (Defense Centers of Excellence, 2015)

However, art therapy is typically the most in psychiatric wards, either individually or in groups. It is currently emerging is family art therapy, and used a lot in the education system, focusing on children who are learning disabled, mentally challenged, emotionally disturbed, socially disadvantaged. According to the AATA, art therapy is practiced in mental health, rehabilitation, medical, educational, forensic, wellness, private practice and community settings. Within these settings, art therapy can be applied to an extremely diverse client population in individual, couples, family, and group therapy formats. Art therapy is an effective treatment for people experiencing developmental, medical, educational, and social or psychological impairment. Other individuals who benefit from art therapy include those who have survived trauma resulting from combat, abuse, and natural disaster, along with individuals who have adverse physical health conditions such as cancer, traumatic brain injury, and other health disability, and finally individuals with autism, dementia, depression, and other disorders. Art therapy helps people resolve conflicts, improve interpersonal skills, manage maladaptive behaviors, reduce negative stress, and achieve personal insight. (AATA, 2013) No matter how it is used, all good art therapy leads to both education and growth. It can be beneficial