Common Treatments for Military-Related PTSD

Dana Pittard, the vice president of Allison Transmission in Indianapolis, Indiana, has long been an advocate for the mental health of soldiers. Dana Pittard worked extensively to prevent suicide among U.S. Army personnel.

One major contributor to the rate of suicide among soldiers and veterans, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be treated through talk therapy and medication. All military personnel are different, and methods that work for some may not work for others.

The most effective type of talk therapy currently used for PTSD is trauma-focused psychotherapy, a broad umbrella which covers multiple approaches. Prolonged exposure therapy helps those with PTSD approach feelings, situations, and memories which they have avoided due to association with trauma, while cognitive processing therapy seeks ways to change difficult thoughts or feelings. In eye-movement desensitization, those with PTSD process trauma while paying attention to a movement or sound, such as a light or tone.

Some forms of PTSD respond well to medications. The most commonly successful are those also used for depression and anxiety. Other medications which were used in the past, such as benzodiazepines, have seen a reduction in use in recent years, as the data indicates they are not effective.