This document provides information on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and war-related stress for veterans & their families. It begins with background on PTSD and traumatic events, then describes common symptoms of PTSD and why they develop. The next section reviews problems associated with PTSD, such as depression, anxiety, and impacts on work & family. The final sections provide suggestions on coping with the disorder and describe treatment methods.
This book takes a case-based approach to addressing the challenges psychiatrists and other clinicians face when working with American combat veterans after their return from a war zone. Written by experts, the book concentrates on a wide variety of concerns associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including different treatments of PTSD. The text also looks at PTSD comorbidities, such as depression and traumatic brain injury (TBI) and other conditions masquerading as PTSD. Finally, the authors touch on other subjects concerning returning veterans, including pain, disability, facing the end of a career, sleep problems , suicidal thoughts, violence, , and mefloquine “toxidrome”. Each case study includes a case presentation, diagnosis and assessment, treatment and management, outcome and case resolution, and clinical pearls and pitfalls. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Related Diseases in Combat Veterans is a valuable resource for civilian and military mental health practitioners, and primary care physicians on how to treat patients returning from active war zones.
War and PTSD are on the public's mind as news stories regularly describe insurgency attacks in Iraq and paint grim portraits of the lives of returning soldiers afflicted with PTSD. These vets have recurrent nightmares and problems with intimacy, can’t sustain jobs or relationships, and won’t leave home, imagining “the enemy” is everywhere. Dr. Edward Tick has spent decades developing healing techniques so effective that clinicians, clergy, spiritual leaders, and veterans’ organizations all over the country are studying them. This book, presented here in an audio version, shows that healing depends on our understanding of PTSD not as a mere stress disorder, but as a disorder of identity itself. In the terror of war, the very soul can flee, sometimes for life. Tick's methods draw on compelling case studies and ancient warrior traditions worldwide to restore the soul so that the veteran can truly come home to community, family, and self.
"The chapters in this book summarize current scientific and clinical knowledge about psychological trauma, PTSD, and related posttraumatic stress reactions among military veterans and civilians deployed to Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Although the content is focused on individuals serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, the book also offers a framework to help those not only in the United States but elsewhere around the world who will be directly affected by future wars. This book is designed to support clinical practice by providing clinicians with solid, evidence-based information. To that end, the chapters include clinical case illustrations intended to help practitioners integrate the material with real-world scenarios. The book should also stimulate research by providing a comprehensive summary of the existing literature. We anticipate that it may function as a practical tool for clinicians interested in trauma work and as a textbook for use in instructional settings. A comprehensive approach to the management of posttraumatic stress reactions must encompass both prevention and treatment. It must also incorporate both clinical and public health perspectives. Problems experienced by individuals affect the larger community, so care at the individual level should be offered within the context of a larger system of services. Thus, this book comprises five major parts: epidemiology and course of problems; assessment of trauma, PTSD, related mental health outcomes (including the context of co-occurring traumatic brain injury), and suicidal states; specific noncombat stressors and problems and their ramifications; prevention and treatment of PTSD; and public health challenges related to barriers to care and integration of service delivery systems"--Introduction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved).
Shell shock, combat fatigue, Vietnam Syndrome--whatever the name, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been with us since ancient Greece. With 20 percent of the veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq exhibiting PTSD symptoms, the United States military has a strong interest in combating the condition. Navy psychiatrist Robert N. McLay has been at the forefront of these efforts, using virtual reality to treat service members and veterans with PTSD. So far, the virtual reality program shows more promise than traditional therapies. Several years into the project, McLay recounts openly and with bleak honesty the successes, failures, and limits of virtual reality treatment--but his experiences hold out hope.--From publisher description.
Over 100 researchers from 16 countries contribute to the first comprehensive handbook on post-traumatic stress disorder. Eight major sections present information on assessment, measurement, and research protocols for trauma related to war veterans, victims of torture, children, and the aged. Clinicians and researchers will find it an indispensible reference, touching on such disciplines and psychiatry, psychology, social work, counseling, sociology, neurophysiology, and political science.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains a significant source of death and permanent disability, contributing to nearly one-third of all injury related deaths in the United States and exacting a profound personal and economic toll. Despite the increased resources that have recently been brought to bear to improve our understanding of TBI, the developme
Since October 2001, approximately 1.64 million U.S. troops have been deployed for Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) in Afghanistan and Iraq. Early evidence suggests that the psychological toll of these deployments -- many involving prolonged exposure to combat-related stress over multiple rotations -- may be disproportionately high compared with the physical injuries of combat. In the face of mounting public concern over post-deployment health care issues confronting OEF/OIF veterans, several task forces, independent review groups, and a Presidential Commission have been convened to examine the care of the war wounded and make recommendations. Concerns have been most recently centered on two combat-related injuries in particular: post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. With the increasing incidence of suicide and suicide attempts among returning veterans, concern about depression is also on the rise. The study discussed in this monograph focuses on post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, and traumatic brain injury, not only because of current high-level policy interest but also because, unlike the physical wounds of war, these conditions are often invisible to the eye, remaining invisible to other servicemembers, family members, and society in general. All three conditions affect mood, thoughts, and behavior; yet these wounds often go unrecognized and unacknowledged. The effect of traumatic brain injury is still poorly understood, leaving a large gap in knowledge related to how extensive the problem is or how to address it. RAND conducted a comprehensive study of the post-deployment health-related needs associated with these three conditions among OEF/OIF veterans, the health care system in place to meet those needs, gaps in the care system, and the costs associated with these conditions and with providing quality health care to all those in need. This monograph presents the results of our study, which should be of interest to mental health treatment providers; health policymakers, particularly those charged with caring for our nation's veterans; and U.S. service men and women, their families, and the concerned public. All the research products from this study are available at http://veterans.rand.org. Data collection for this study began in April 2007and concluded in January 2008. Specific activities included a critical reviewof the extant literature on the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, and traumatic brain injury and their short- and long-term consequences; a population-based survey of service members and veterans who served in Afghanistan or Iraq to assess health status and symptoms, as well asutilization of and barriers to care; a review of existing programs to treat service members and veterans with the three conditions; focus groups withmilitary service members and their spouses; and the development of a microsimulation model to forecast the economic costs of these conditions overtime. Among our recommendations is that effective treatments documented in the scientific literature -- evidence-based care -- are available for PTSD and major depression. Delivery of such care to all veterans with PTSD or majordepression would pay for itself within two years, or even save money, by improving productivity and reducing medical and mortality costs. Such care may also be a cost-effective way to retain a ready and healthy military force for the future. However, to ensure that this care is delivered requires system-level changes across the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the U.S. health care system.
In response to growing national concern about the number of veterans who might be at risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of their military service, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) asked the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to conduct a study on the diagnosis and assessment of, and treatment and compensation for PTSD. An existing IOM committee, the Committee on Gulf War and Health: Physiologic, Psychologic and Psychosocial Effects of Deployment-Related Stress, was asked to conduct the diagnosis, assessment, and treatment aspects of the study because its expertise was well-suited to the task. The committee was specifically tasked to review the scientific and medical literature related to the diagnosis and assessment of PTSD, and to review PTSD treatments (including psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy) and their efficacy. In addition, the committee was given a series of specific questions from VA regarding diagnosis, assessment, treatment, and compensation. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is a brief elaboration of the committee's responses to VA's questions, not a detailed discussion of the procedures and tools that might be used in the diagnosis and assessment of PTSD. The committee decided to approach its task by separating diagnosis and assessment from treatment and preparing two reports. This first report focuses on diagnosis and assessment of PTSD. Given VA's request for the report to be completed within 6 months, the committee elected to rely primarily on reviews and other well-documented sources. A second report of this committee will focus on treatment for PTSD; it will be issued in December 2006. A separate committee, the Committee on Veterans' Compensation for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, has been established to conduct the compensation study; its report is expected to be issued in December 2006.
