Science Friday

Is This PTSD Treatment Too Good To Be True?


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About 7% of veterans experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and that number can be closer to 30% for those who have served in a war zone.  

But PTSD has been treated pretty much the same way since the disorder was first recognized roughly four decades ago: Patients are instructed to revisit their trauma until the memory no longer creates an emotional response. This process can be so harrowing that over half of veterans are unable to complete the full course of treatment. But what if there was a way for PTSD treatment to be virtually painless?

Host Flora Lichtman talks with Yasmin Tayag, staff writer at The Atlantic, who explored a controversial treatment called Reconsolidation of Traumatic Memories, and the challenges of even studying a treatment that bucks conventional wisdom.  

Guest: Yasmin Tayag is a staff reporter for The Atlantic.

Transcripts for each episode are available within 1-3 days at sciencefriday.com.

 

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