Blog posts with the tag "Treatment"

Staff Perspective: Weeding Through the Literature on Marijuana Use in Treating PTSD (Part 2)

In Part 1 of this blog titled, Pondering the Question of Prescribed Cannabis Use and the Potential Effect on Trauma and Stressor-Related TreatmentI closed by saying that while research is being conducted currently on this issue, there is no study of marijuana use in the Veteran population.  I am happy to report that research with 76 Veteran participants who have treatment-resistant PTSD was approved by the DEA and is underway. 

Staff Perspective: Military Couples - Challenges and Survival Strategies

Most military couples would agree that military life offers a fair number of challenges.  I reached out to some “real life” experts – military couples who have been around the block a time or two – to learn from their wealth of experience.  Their marriages have collectively seen hundreds of deployments, PCSs, TDYs, and other major military family events – they have experienced ups, downs, and in-betweens – and they have some amazing stories to tell.  I asked them to share the greatest challenges they have faced as military couples and the survival strategies that have kept them going.         

Staff Perspective: The Treatment Rationale - Blueprints of Psychotherapy

Jenna Ermold, Ph.D.

Imagine that you want to build a house -- or better yet, that you NEED to build a house to get respite from the elements and to feel safe and comfortable. Unsure where to begin, you seek out a builder to help guide you in this process. You might feel a sense of trepidation. What if this builder doesn’t understand your needs or the kind of house you’re hoping for? Worse yet, what if the houses they build aren’t solid, long-lasting, and sound? Now imagine meeting with that builder and getting vague and confusing details about the building plan with no glimpse of a blueprint, but having to consent to the project. Oh... and you also are required to put down a significant deposit.

Staff Perspective: Pondering the question of prescribed cannabis use and the potential effect on Trauma and Stressor-Related treatment (Part 1)

Frequently, in the past couple of years a question has emerged regarding how to handle a very specific situation in mental health treatment.  That situation is what to do when a patient appropriate for PTSD treatment is also taking medicinal grade prescription cannabis for other issues such as chronic pain, anxiety or insomnia.  What makes this question unique from the issue of any substance use/abuse during mental health treatment is the unknown quality of this substance.  For instance, if a patient states they drink 2-3 glasses of wine approximately 3 nights a week, we have a good idea of how this substance use may affect their ability to process cognitions and emotions.  However, with cannabis there are many questions.

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