Olfaction is one thing that distinguishes UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Trauma Management Therapy (TMT) Program from other post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatment programs.
Dr. Deborah Beidel, director of the UCF Anxiety Disorders Clinic, uses olfactory stimulants such as 麻豆精品 S淢oroccan marketplace, 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S渂ody odor 麻豆精品 S� and 麻豆精品 S渨eapon fire 麻豆精品 S� to stimulate the same part of the brain (the limbic system) that handles memories and emotions.
麻豆精品 S淥n our diagnostic scale, the average score before treatment was 80, which indicates severe PTSD, 麻豆精品 S� says Beidel. 麻豆精品 S淎fter treatment, the average dropped to 40. That 麻豆精品 S檚 going from 麻豆精品 S業 麻豆精品 S檓 having nightmares every night 麻豆精品 S� to 麻豆精品 S業 have a nightmare once a month. 麻豆精品 S� 麻豆精品 S�
Beidel and her team use stimulants to replicate traumatic events experienced by PTSD sufferers. Visual, audio and tactile components are also used, but according to Beidel 麻豆精品 S檚 patients, smell acts as the most powerful trigger.
麻豆精品 S淭he point is not to make people comfortable with these events, but to decrease the emotion that has gone along with them, 麻豆精品 S� says Beidel. 麻豆精品 S淪o someone stops being afraid to drive under an overpass because it triggers a reaction related to a bridge attack they lived through in Iraq. 麻豆精品 S� John, a soldier who is halfway through treatment, says, 麻豆精品 S淚 think the program will give me insight and tools to deal with my anxieties. I 麻豆精品 S檝e just gotten to the point where I can sit in a restaurant without having to face the door. 麻豆精品 S�
While TMT was designed as a 17-week program, the U.S. Army recently granted an additional $1.5 million to UCF to develop a three week intensive program for active-duty soldiers. The grant 麻豆精品 S檚 coverage includes patient lodging, which enables soldiers from across the country to participate.
The researchers plan to accept a total of 180 soldiers for treatment, and are now taking applications. For more information, visit anxietyclinic.cos.ucf.edu.