I need information on P.T.S.D.

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Permalink Reply by Richard Nongard - NLPBoard.com on January 27, 2009 at 8:25am

This video is from a four hour two disc DVD that I have focusing on a variety of methods for helping people with ptsd

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Permalink Reply by Doreen Cohanim C.Ht on January 27, 2009 at 10:07am

Hi Donna,
I highly recomand Richard Nongard, I have used his NLP, and Stage Hypnosis on the way, I am telling you, I have been very satisfied and recomand his products to everyone here...

My 2 cents,
Doreen Cohanim C.Ht

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Permalink Reply by Steve Lovold on January 27, 2009 at 11:13am

Hello Donna, I have lived with sevre P.T.S.D. for quite a few years, and have tried quite a number of different therapies. I like what Doreen and Adrian say here, about N.L.P. I had the good fortune of having John McCarthy, perform the fast phobia cure on me, along with that I also went through the entire N.L.P. training he offers as well.

Along with all of this I have found a lot of bennefit through meditating, and doing a little Hatha Yoga as well.

As I've delved into this area of reducing ones stress, I have become familiar with the AMERICAN ACADEMY OF EXPERTS IN TRAUMATIC STRESS. A year and a half ago I was on their site and came across an abstract posted by RoseMarie Amendolia, Ph.D. who posted a narrative constructivist perspective of treatment of PTSD with Ericksonian Hypnosis and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).

Both of these interventions I have found to facilitate signicant decreases in hyperarousal , along with being able to become much more intigrated .So I am in total agreeance with Dr. Amendolia's findings. So I recomend checking out the (AAETS) site on the web, they have an extensive ammount of information, recommended literature, and certification programs available.

I am also blessed to to be involved with writer/healer Deena Metzger, who have taken me through a number of shamanic workshops that she facilitates. Deena has also introduced me to Edward Tick, who has been working with Veit-Nam Veterans for over 30 years now, he also a writter/healer that is highly sought after. I am accually going to a class that he is having this friday, up in Ojai, California.
I have a philosophy, whatever works, work it. ~ Thanks

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Permalink Reply by Richard Nongard - NLPBoard.com on January 27, 2009 at 11:14am

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&fkt=1965&a...

These results are filtered to show government publications and research. Some VERY useful info from DoD, Military and Veterans Dept.

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Permalink Reply by Steve Lovold on January 27, 2009 at 11:50am

Hello Richard, yes for the vast majority, of the information availbile from the (AAETS).

I equally rely on the other people who I mentioned as well, who are not affiliated with any governmental body at all , Deena and Ed Tick . As far as I'm concerned , I hold them in a very high place, as far as reliable information, but thats just my opinion.

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Permalink Reply by Michael Ellner on January 27, 2009 at 8:44pm

Disclaimer:
I do not recommend that "certified" hypnosis professionals who are unlicensed health care professionals treat PTSD or any mental health condition without a medical referral or under the supervision of a licensed health care provider.

Having made that clear - Any Skilled Hypno Can Help Clients Transform Negative Triggers Into Positive Reactions -- Right?

I am including an excellent intro and over view of "PTSD" --

Imagine that your intake/pre-talk is a sketch pad ... Now imagine that by the time you review all the resources in this post - you will have a black belt in helping people make peace with their pasts and that you won't be afraid to use your creative skills and abilities to do it!

Reminder -- Exciting your client's imaginations in your pre-talk automatically empowers any technique that you "act out" during the hypnotic ritual part of your sessions- The art is in persuading your clients to expect success in your intake/pre-talk and moving them into highly charged mindsets expecting positive outcomes - Master this and you can easily use just about any technique to promote self-healing and restoring balance during the hypnotic ritual part of your sessions.

Your 1st creative challenge is to give your client a reason to believe that hypnosis can help them find peace within themselves and enable them to put their pasts behind them... It could be as simple as: "Hypnosis can help you take the suffering and pain out of your traumatic experiences so that you are able to blah, blah, blah..."

Your 2nd creative challenge is to help your clients believe that doing so - automatically opens the door to creating an exciting, pleasurable, satisfying and rewarding life for themselves --- starting today....

Hint:
I have found that guiding these clients through FORGIVENESS rituals is a very helpful way to help them off-load their toxic emotions as is the Ellner/Barsky Detox...


Historical Background PTSD:
http://campus.houghton.edu/orgs/psychology/ptsd/history.htm

Shell-shock and other Disabilities
http://www.valourandhorror.com/DB/BACK/Fatigue.htm

DIAGNOSTIC FRAUD AT AMERICA'S EXPENSE
ng/ptsd.html"">http://www.psychassault.org/Funding/ptsd.htmlhttp://www.psychassaul...
ng/ptsd.html

Shock and Awe: The long-term psychological effects of war*
http://www.davidsmail.freeuk.com/stickley.htm

Gulf War Syndrome
http://www.chclibrary.org/micromed/00049910.html

What is Gulf War Syndrome?
http://whyfiles.org/025chem_weap/2.html

Highly recommended: Dick Sutphen is an excellent hypnosis educator and
practitioner
http://www.rmsg.us/textfiles/brainwsh.htm

Bonus:
FDA Consumer magazine
May-June 2000

Escaping the Prison of a Past Trauma: New Treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder

by Tamar Nordenberg
January 18 marks the anniversary of a mighty adrenaline rush for Kellie
Greene. She went sky diving on that day last year, in search of a high-flying
thrill to overwhelm her traumatic anniversary memories of the rape she had
endured
exactly five years earlier.
"Sky-diving, you're screaming," says 34-year-old Greene, founder of the
Orlando-based rape education group SOAR (Speaking Out About Rape), "but you're
screaming because you're excited. 'Oh my God, I'm doing this!' The whole world
is
underneath you, and it's so amazing. It just looks like the Earth's standing
still, not like you're falling toward it."
"Sky-diving, I controlled the adrenaline rush," Greene continues. "I had
gotten tired of getting so anxious every year around that day. Now, it's no
longer
the date that I was raped, but the day I went sky diving."
It was on Jan. 18 in 1994 that a knife-wielding stranger raped Greene inside
her own apartment as she returned there from the laundry room in her complex.
The intruder smashed Greene on the head with a tea kettle as she opened the
apartment door, paying no mind to her pleas, "Take my money. I have money!"
Since the day she was raped, Greene has battled mental demons previously
unknown to her. "For someone who had been pretty normal her whole life and had
never needed counseling, it was frightening to be so out of control with my
feelings and not know why," Greene recalls. "I would cry uncontrollably at any
time. It was just a sadness that was so heavy, some days I wouldn't even want to
get out of bed. Not being able to organize my daily routine--deciding what to
wear or what to eat--because those might be the wrong choices to make. I would
lock myself in the house an hour before it got dark, and not answer the phone
and not answer the door. I was afraid to drive places or to be alone. I wasn't
able to sleep at night, then was so tired during the day it's all I did.
There were bad flashbacks, too, but they were strange flashbacks because they
were
dark. It was just darkness."
The flashbacks, troublesome sleep, and other symptoms Greene experienced are
not uncommon for someone who has lived through the stressful ordeal of rape.
Her types of symptoms are among the tell-tale signs of post-traumatic stress
disorder, or PTSD, a debilitating condition that can beset anyone who has felt
fear, helplessness or horror during a traumatic event that caused or threatened
to cause that person or someone else to die or be seriously injured.
"All of us have had experiences that are sufficiently upsetting that we go
over and over them in our minds," says Thomas Laughren, M.D., head of the Food
and Drug Administration's psychiatric drug products group. "But with PTSD, it's
an order of magnitude worse. It can be a very severe kind of illness that
limits people to an extent that is completely foreign to most of us."
About "Shell Shock"
In a given year, more than 10 million Americans (about 4 percent) will
experience the life-disrupting symptoms of PTSD, which was first widely
recognized
during World War I and known as "shell shock" or "battle fatigue."
Like combat horrors, other "manmade" tragedies such as criminal assaults or
sexual attacks can provoke PTSD symptoms, as can a fire, earthquake, or other
natural disaster. Accidents--car and airplane crashes, for example--are also
common precipitators of PTSD.
By definition, the disorder can only develop in response to a traumatic
event, says Edna Foa, Ph.D., director of the University of Pennsylvania's Center
for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety. It can't arise from other seriously
stressful occurrences that are less extreme--losing a job, say, or going through
a
divorce.
And, while not all life stressors are traumatic enough to lead to a PTSD
diagnosis (but instead might cause "generalized anxiety"), not everyone who
experiences a trauma will develop post-traumatic stress disorder, either.
As many as 70 percent of American adults have been through at least one major
trauma, according to the "Expert Consensus Treatment Guidelines for
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: A Guide For Patients and Families," a guide
written by
Foa and others based on a survey of 100 PTSD experts. But, Foa explains, "Most
people who go through a traumatic event may be more frightened and act more
cautiously than they used to, but don't develop the disorder. That is, they
don't get symptoms that would disrupt their daily life in a significant way and
render them dysfunctional on some level."
Experts divide symptoms that rise to the level of PTSD into these main types:

* Re-experiencing the traumatic event. Re-experiencing can refer to having
intrusive memories of the ordeal, flashbacks when awake, recurring nightmares,
and exaggerated emotional and physical responses to triggers that remind the
person of the event. "Sometimes I've thought I was back in Vietnam. When you
start dreaming, you can smell the flesh of your buddies burning," says veteran
John Palmer Sr., who recalls being among 19 wounded survivors of a 1968 ambush
by the North Vietnamese that killed the rest of his 59-strong battalion.
* Avoidance. After a trauma, people may lose interest in and avoid certain
activities, places, and thoughts and feelings related to the trauma. July 4th
is "really hard" for 51-year-old veteran Palmer because the loud noises remind
him of wartime. And Palmer avoided seeing the critically acclaimed "Saving
Private Ryan." "I chose not to go," he explains, "even though some people
thought it was pretty good ... if there could be anything good about it.
Watching
movies about the war bothers me, and I start having nightmares."
* Emotional detachment. Foa's patients have told her, "I'm not the person I
used to be. I don't trust people. I can't feel loving anymore." One of her
patients, who had been injured in an explosion at his factory that killed many
others, was "like a zombie emotionally," Foa says. The man's daughter
complained, "He's not there for us. All he cares about is himself, and indulging
in his
own misery."
* Increased arousal. This symptom can show itself in difficulty sleeping,
irritability or angry outbursts, difficulty concentrating, and unusually
startled reactions in certain situations. Palmer says, "When I first came back
[from
Vietnam], people were afraid to be around me. I got in a lot of trouble,
drinking and fighting, and I didn't really care."

People can have wide-ranging reactions to a certain stressor. Some people
will have no long-lasting effects, while on the other end of the spectrum,
people
can have problems that last for months or years. The symptoms must last for
at least a month, however, to be classified as post-traumatic stress disorder.
While symptoms usually begin immediately after a trauma or within the
following few weeks, sometimes they can show up months or years later. Many of
the
World War II prisoners of war that Veterans Administration counselor James
Boehnlein, M.D., talks with have had stable lives--were married long-term,
raised
children, and worked steadily--and developed delayed PTSD symptoms after they
retired and when people their age began to die of natural causes. "Their losses
brought back memories of their wartime sadness and loss," Boehnlein explains,
"and they would start having nightmares of combat experience and being
prisoners of war."
So far, science can't predict precisely how a certain individual will react
to a traumatic event. But certain factors can provide clues about the
likelihood and severity of PTSD:

* How severe and long-lasting was the trauma? The more intense and
long-lasting the traumatic experience, the more likely it is that the victim
will
develop PTSD.
* How close was the person to the trauma, and how dangerous did it seem?
Foa's patient who was injured in the factory explosion was more vulnerable to
PTSD than if he had been across the street, merely heard the bang, and only
later
found out about the explosion's tragic consequences. Foa cites one recent
study that found that women who perceived their lives were in danger during a
rape had 2.5 times the incidence of PTSD than did others who didn't fear for
their lives during the rape.
* Has the person been traumatized in the past, and if so, how many times?
One of Foa's patients didn't develop PTSD until the third sudden death in her
circle of friends and acquaintances. The third time, "that was it," says the
therapist. "Now she's thinking, 'What's next? Next it will be me.'"
* Was the trauma inflicted by other people? PTSD is more likely after a
rape or other manmade trauma than after an earthquake, hurricane, flood, or
other
naturally occurring disaster. Psychologically, it seems to matter whether the
trauma is intentionally aimed at the victim or is random and suffered by many
people together.
* What is the person's coping style--does he or she tend to stay enraged?
And, does the person get support from friends and family, or negative reactions?
People are less likely to have PTSD, elaborates Foa, if they think about the
trauma, talk to other people about it, and let go of their anger over the
incident. Foa encourages people to face the trauma: "Talk to someone you trust,
write about it, do anything but push it away." And, she says, if the symptoms
still cause suffering after several months, professional help should be sought.

But many people don't seek professional help for their condition, according
to mental health experts. Possible reasons cited in the PTSD expert consensus
guidelines: Sufferers may feel withdrawn, guilty and mistrustful and naturally
want to avoid dealing with unpleasant feelings, and they may not even realize
they have a problem or that it can be treated.
But PTSD is treatable--with medication, psychotherapy, or both.
Like many trauma victims, at first Greene was reluctant to seek professional
treatment. "I was afraid if I told anyone how out of control I was really
feeling, they would commit me to a mental institution." When Greene did finally
confide in a therapist, he explained that her symptoms were a common reaction to
a traumatic event and she wasn't going insane. Greene learned to manage her
anxiety by breathing deeply and counting until she felt calm. And her doctor
prescribed Zoloft (sertraline hydrochloride), the first FDA-approved drug for
PTSD.
First PTSD Drug
Before its approval last December for post-traumatic stress disorder, Zoloft
was already approved by FDA for depression, panic disorder, and
obsessive-compulsive disorder. Its effectiveness for PTSD is in line with its
benefit for
depression and the other disorders, says FDA's Laughren. Studies show that about
two-thirds of PTSD patients improve with Zoloft, while one-third improve when
taking a placebo.
Zoloft's approval for PTSD was based on two 12-week studies of the drug that
demonstrated its effectiveness. While Zoloft's benefit over placebo was clear
in women patients, little effect was seen in the male group. Scientists aren't
certain why the gender difference exists, but some have theorized that PTSD
in veterans, a mostly male population, might differ somehow from the disorder
in the mostly female population of sexual assault victims.
After her rape, Greene says, Zoloft played a big part in helping her heal.
"It really took the edge off. I had been playing the attack over and over in my
mind, like a broken record, and Zoloft helped me get out of that groove. It
didn't make me a zombie or make me ecstatically happy, either. But all of a
sudden I woke up and said, 'I can handle the day.'"
Greene took Zoloft for about a year, which was within the typical range of
six to 24 months. She didn't notice any bothersome side effects, though some
people do experience dry mouth, nausea, sleepiness, or other negative reactions.
While Zoloft is the only drug approved by FDA to treat PTSD, doctors
sometimes prescribe other drugs that they believe may improve a patient's
condition.
For PTSD, doctors sometimes prescribe drugs in the same class as Zoloft. These
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRI's, include Paxil
(paroxetine), Prozac (fluoxetine), Luvox (fluvoxamine), and Celexa (citalopram).
Based on
an individual patient's medical circumstances, a doctor may in some cases
choose to prescribe other types of antidepressants or anti-anxiety medications.
Facing Fears
As an alternative to medication or coupled with it, some patients opt to rely
on group or individual psychotherapy to manage their PTSD symptoms. Three
types are considered especially effective, according to the expert consensus
guidelines:

* Exposure therapy. To help patients confront the everyday reminders of
their trauma, therapists sometimes use "exposure in the imagination" or
"exposure
in reality." In the first type, patients imagine the trauma and recount the
memories in detail, over and over again, with a therapist they trust and at
home between sessions. The goal of therapy: to give people an opportunity to
reprocess what happened until the thoughts lose their distressful impact. Lyn
Rezer, 35, re-examined a traumatic gang rape that had occurred when she was 12
years old and had haunted her for more than 20 years. Using this approach, Rezer
says she conquered her feelings of worthlessness and despair. "I walked around
for 23 years feeling extremely suicidal, wanting to flee, wanting to cry. I
thought I was bad, I was filthy, I was nothing. I detached myself emotionally
from a lot, and today I'm not detached. I feel everything, like a normal
35-year-old woman with normal impulses and instincts. I haven't had a suicidal
thought since midway through treatment." With exposure in reality, therapists
ask
patients to gradually expose themselves to situations or places they had been
avoiding because they are reminders of the trauma.
* Cognitive behavioral therapy. With CBT, therapists work on changing
victims' irrational beliefs, such as self-blame for a rape, criminal assault, or
accident.
* Anxiety management. This classification refers to techniques such as slow
abdominal breathing to relax and avoid hyperventilation, and positive
thinking and self-talk to replace negative thoughts.

Therapist Foa, who at her University of Pennsylvania clinic uses exposure
therapy, sometimes combined with other types, estimates that 80 percent of
patients accomplish significant improvement in their lives over the 12 weeks or
so
of therapy.
Foa acknowledges that it's difficult to directly face a traumatic memory that
one has been avoiding, sometimes for years. But getting help is critical, she
says, if the stifling symptoms of PTSD do not resolve themselves pretty
quickly after a trauma. Immediately after the trauma, it's normal to experience
emotional swings, Foa says, so "you needn't rush to treatment." But if your
symptoms begin to appear chronic, at four to six months, she says, they're not
likely to improve on their own.
In light of the healing effects of PTSD treatment in her own life, rape
survivor and rookie sky diver Greene has committed herself to encouraging others
to
take brave steps to deal with their traumatic memories. Greene says she has
been inspired by popular singer Tori Amos, a rape victim herself and co-founder
of the trauma support organization RAINN (the Rape, Abuse and Incest National
Network). Amos, who says she wrote her song "Me and a Gun" as a healing step
for herself, wrote a public letter to others who have faced similar traumas.
The message: "Healing takes courage, and we all have courage, even if we have
to dig a little to find it!"
It's worth digging up the courage, Rezer confirms. "It's a lot of hard work,
but your life doesn't have to be dictated by your past. I never believed you
could go back in time and change things, but I know now that you can change
them--not the events, just the feelings and thoughts surrounding them that have
taken over your life."
Tamar Nordenberg is a staff writer for FDA Consumer.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Resources for Trauma Survivors

Anxiety Disorders Association of America
11900 Parklawn Drive, Suite 100
Rockville, MD 20852
301-231-9350
www.adaa.org
International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies
60 Revere Drive, Suite 500
Northbrook, IL 60062
847-480-9028
www.istss.org
National Center for Victims of Crime
2111 Wilson Blvd., Suite 300
Arlington, VA 22201
1-800-394-2255
www.ncvc.org
National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
215 North Main St.
White River Junction, VT 05009
802-296-5132
www.ncptsd.org
Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN)
635 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E.
Washington, DC 20002
1-800-656-HOPE (1-800-656-4673) (24-hour confidential hot line)
www.rainn.org
--T.N.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Making the Diagnosis: Simple Stress or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder?

Answering these questions may help your health-care provider determine if you
have PTSD:
Have you experienced or witnessed a life-threatening event that caused you to
feel intense fear, helplessness, or horror?
Do you re-experience the event in at least one of the following ways?

* Repeated, distressing memories and/or dreams
* Flashbacks, or a sense of reliving the event
* Intense physical and/or emotional distress when exposed to things that
remind you of the event

Do you avoid reminders of the event and feel numb, compared with the way you
felt before, in three or more of the following ways?

* Avoiding thoughts, feelings, or conversation about it
* Avoiding activities, places, or people who remind you of it
* Being unable to remember important parts of it
* Losing interest in significant activities in your life
* Feeling detached from other people
* Feeling that your range of emotions is restricted
* Feeling as if your future has shrunk (for example, you don't expect to
have a career, marriage, children, or a normal lifespan)

Are you troubled by two or more of the following?

* Problems sleeping
* Irritability or outbursts of anger
* Problems concentrating
* Feeling "on guard"
* An exaggerated startle response

Do your symptoms interfere with your daily life?
Have your symptoms lasted at least a month?
(Source: Anxiety Disorders Association of America, based on the Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition.)
--T.N.

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Permalink Reply by Synapse on January 27, 2009 at 8:52pm

Reply by Michael Ellner

Highly recommended: Dick Sutphen is an excellent hypnosis educator and
practitioner
http://www.rmsg.us/textfiles/brainwsh.htm

Michael, I tried to follow the link, but the page won't load. Is it my computer or the site at fault?

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Permalink Reply by Michael Ellner on January 27, 2009 at 9:20pm

There seems to be a problem with that link -- it was for Dick's free book on brainwashing... Rats...

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Permalink Reply by John Sannicandro on January 28, 2009 at 4:12am

Is this the link you are referring to? Thanks Michael.

http://www.the7thfire.com/new_world_order/mind_control/battle_for_y...


John
www.jslmhc.com

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Permalink Reply by Steve Lovold on January 28, 2009 at 3:48pm

Wow , as a combat verteran, I just feel obligated to say here, that I am officially impressed with all of the post here in this discussion. You guys each have more than enough brain power here to fry an egg. ha haa. It's so nice to be in communication with all of you, that are, "cookin with oil"!

~ Thanks

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Permalink Reply by Donna Carter on January 28, 2009 at 8:21pm

Michael,

Let me just say this again...

You are awesome!

Thanks so much.
~D.

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Permalink Reply by Donna Carter on January 28, 2009 at 8:23pm

Thanks to everyone who posted on here.

My cup runnith over....

What a great place to be.
~~D.

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