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Running Header: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder & Biofeedback Therapy
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder & Biofeedback Therapy
Chris Casciotti
Alvernia University
Dr. Ballantyne
110.12.15

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Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that can develop from a
traumatic event in someone’s life. They can develop symptoms by personally going through the
event or being a bystander watching that is going on. They can feel that someone can get hurt
and there is nothing that can be really done to save themselves or someone else. It has a lasting
effect on a person’s life and they will constantly relive the event in their head. Anything that they
remember that triggers the event will cause them to be afraid and act out.
There is no control over the outbursts the only way you can do so is to notice the signs
and avoid them so the event cannot be triggered. PTSD is common in veterans that come back
from tours of duty and what they have seen in combat has a huge impact on their life. It is more
common in soldiers or in people that have seen events that will always have an effect on their
lives. . “About 6 of every 10 (or 60%) of men and 5 of every 10 (or 50%) of women experience
at least one trauma in their lives.” (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 2015) “Over 15 million
people living in the United States today will experience posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in
their lifetime and have at least one biological child.” (Erbes & Larsen, 2015)
This mental disorder is more common than people think and sometimes it does get
spotted right away. That makes it harder to diagnose and it makes it harder for them to be able to
go through treatment. It cannot be cured but with treatment whether it is with therapy or with
medications. Two medications that are taken for PTSD are Zoloft and Paxil. “The primary
treatment is psychotherapy, but often includes medication.” (Mayo Clinic, 2014)
There are also different types of therapy that can be used to treat PTSD not just
psychotherapy. There are two other types of psychotherapy like Exposure therapy and Cognitive

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therapy that can be used to treat a person with PTSD. They focus more on the issue and get their
patients to try and hit their fear head on.
The people that give care to patients with PTSD have to be careful with the way they
deliver their care. One wrong move and the patient can over react which can have a lasting effect
on the caregiver and their family. The caregiver should give directions to the family on how to
keep themselves and the patient safe from harm.
They could be a danger to themselves and the people that they love. “Parents with PTSD
report more parenting and child behavior problems, lower parenting satisfaction, more family
violence, and poorer parent– child relationships than parents without PTSD.” (Erbes & Larsen,
2015)
This shows how PTSD can make life harder for the family because the same types of
relationships are not able to be formed. The children of a parent that have PTSD can be at harm
because of the unpredictability of their parents because you never know what an outburst will
occur. Sometimes avoiding the incident and not addressing the trauma that has been endured
may not be a good thing. It will be scary for someone to face their fears but over time they may
be able to fight their fear, it may just take some time. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
has trouble with getting the veterans the help that they need and they suffer more.
With a long time table for care to be given, this puts more pressure on the family to take
care of the patient. This can have an impact on the family and if something tragic happens, it
may cause the family to develop some symptoms of PTSD. This disorder has a huge impact on
the people around the patient that has it and it can change everyone lives in a blink of an eye.
The best thing to do is to help prevent them from out bursting and for the VA to get better at

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delivering services to the veterans the care that is desperately needed. Without this information
and guidance, it is likely that many families will struggle alone with this difficult topic, and the
legacy of parental PTSD may live on in their offspring. (Erbes & Larsen, 2015)
There has to be more treatment accessible for people with PTSD. It is a currently issue in
the United States and these people are damaged and need help to get back into regular life which
is a hard adjustment to make. Concerns for these patients are very high because they are very
unstable. The solution that I have thought of using to offer more help to people with PTSD is
another type of therapy called Biofeedback. It is a type of therapy that focuses on controlling the
mind and the information that you receive, this can allow you to learn how to block any
unnecessary information.
You get an idea on what information is helpful to you and can help you in the long run.
“Biofeedback has been in practice for many years and has shown great promise as an effective
treatment option for PTSD and substance abuse.” (PTSD Treatment Help, 2015) Through
Biofeedback we can be able to control what is being taken in by the patients. We will try to
eliminate the bad memories or parts of them so there outbreaks will not be as severe.
Biofeedback focuses on the “fight or flight” reflex and it can help control how you react to
certain situations.
“Biofeedback can help individuals learn how their bodies react to stressors that affect the
autonomic nervous system and trigger the “fight or flight” responses seen in those with PTSD.”
(PTSD Treatment Help, 2015) Each person is different because of the way they control the
reflex. We would have the patients go to Biofeedback offices and have the offices work with the
VA to get benefits for the veterans. It is another version of therapy and it does not usually

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involve medication which may be a better alternative. If we can get the VA back into shape they
can help monitor the care that is given.
The Biofeedback psychologists can monitor the feedback that they get through their
patients. It can be reported to the families and the VA if they are a veteran. With these results the
families can get an understanding what is going through the patients and be able to prevent
outbreaks from happening. The main goal is to keep the patient and everyone around them to be
safe. We do not want to put any more people in danger.
We can be able to use the facilities that are used by the psychologists. We can get help
from them and from the VA, which will allow the patients to get benefits. There are resources
that are out there for use for these patients. “Biofeedback therapy includes the use of a
biofeedback machine and several pain-free sensors that are placed strategically on the
individuals. These sensors include the following.” (PTSD Treatment Help, 2015)
The biofeedback machine is used to help lower stress and it shows how you react to
certain situations. It can also show what happens when you have flashbacks of the event that has
triggered your PTSD. With that information, the psychologists can show the families how they
react. They can learn from what is going on and learn how to handle certain situations.
The main goal is to show the families and the patients how they react when they go on
their outbursts. It allows for everyone to know the signs and be able to prevent outbursts from
happening. “The ultimate goal of biofeedback therapy is to allow individuals to increase their
awareness about what happens to their body when under stress and feeling anxious.” (PTSD
Treatment Help, 2015) Controlling the outbreak with the biofeedback therapy it will allow the
outbursts to occur less. Stress does not allow the body to perform certain functions. The

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biofeedback allows for them to control the body movements and reactions. The therapy can help
limit the stressful reactions and not allow for outburst to occur. The patient can learn what
reactions occur when they have an outburst and then, the family can notice these signs and
prevent from the outbreak from happening. It allows for both the patient and for the family to
learn how to handle everything.
This can make life easy for everyone because living with a member of the family that has
PTSD can be very hard and a life changing event. Their life is the only thing that you focus on
and you lose track on everything that is happening. It can be very stressful and sometimes it can
even allow the family to develop certain symptoms of PTSD. For this reason the VA and the
biofeedback psychologists can work together so the patients can get out of their homes. With
them out of the homes, it will provide less of a burden for the family to take care of them.
In conclusion, PTSD is a very serious disorder that has a major impact on the people in
this country. With the veterans coming back from their tours and people witnessing traumatic
events, their memories will always stay with them. You know when they start acting out that
something is wrong and that they need help. They may feel afraid or think that you have no
control their reactions or they will have no control what they are thinking.
Many preventative reactions need to be done, so that the patient can live in a safe
environment. If they are a danger to themselves or to anyone in their family then, the VA or the
biofeedback therapists can get them help and into a safer environment. The main goal is to think
what is best for the patient and their needs but, if the family cannot handle them something needs
to make everything better for the patient and their families. ” Biofeedback may help you control
symptoms of your condition or reduce the amount of medication you take.” (Mayo Clinic, 2014)

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References
Erbes,C., & Larsen,J. (2015). Veteran–ChildCommunicationAboutParental PTSD:. Journalof Family
Psychology,595– 603.
Mayo Clinic.(2014, April 14). Treatmentsand drugs.RetrievedfromPost-traumaticstressdisorder
(PTSD):http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/post-traumatic-stress-
disorder/basics/treatment/con-20022540
PTSD TreatmentHelp.(2015). PTSDTreatmentHelp. RetrievedfromBiofeedbackandPTSDand
AddictionRecovery:http://ptsdtreatmenthelp.com/biofeedback-and-ptsd-and-addiction-
recovery/
U.S. Departmentof VeteransAffairs.(2015,August13). How Common isPTSD? RetrievedfromPTSD:
National CenterforPTSD:http://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/PTSD-overview/basics/how-common-
is-ptsd.asp