Post Traumatic Stress
Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome
Some things are just too horrible to forget. A brutal battle, a natural disaster, a personal tragedy—all can haunt you for decades, and all can lead to post-traumatic stress syndrome.
The Vietnam War brought the syndrome to the nation’s consciousness. Soldiers unable to deal with the ravages of war brought their emotional baggage home, where it severely altered their lives. People with post-traumatic stress syndrome suffer many of these symptoms: angry outbursts, depression, over reaction to seemingly small matters, feelings of alienation, nightmares and flashbacks, insomnia and abuse of alcohol and other drugs.
Women who are raped and people who witness terrifying events can develop post-traumatic stress syndrome months or years later. Those with the syndrome usually need counseling and other help. The natural remedies in this chapter—in conjunction with professional care and used with your doctor’s approval—may help ease post-traumatic stress syndrome, according to some health professionals.
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Sound Therapy
To ease anxiety related to post-traumatic stress syndrome, try listening to relaxing music for at least 20 to 30 minutes each day, says Steven Halpern, Ph.D., composer, researcher and author of Sound Health: The Music and Sounds That Make Us Whole.
To get started, turn on the music, then sit or lie comfortably, close your eyes and take a deep breath. Dr. Halpern suggests that you wear headphones to focus your full attention and to avoid distraction. He recommends, however, that you keep the speakers playing, so your body absorbs the sound energy. While the music plays, let your breathing slow down and become steady. Listen not just to the notes but to the silence between the notes. Dr. Halpern says this will keep you from analyzing the music, which will allow it to relax you.
For suggested pieces to relax by, see “Sailing Away to Key Largo” on page 129. Many of those pieces are available in music stores. For mail-order information, refer to the resource list on page 642.
Yoga
Stress reduction is an essential part of recovery from post-traumatic stress syndrome, says Stephen A. Nezezon, M.D., yoga teacher and staff physician at the Himalayan International Institute of Yoga Science and Philosophy in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. To lower stress, he says, you can try a daily routine of breathing exercises, meditation and yoga poses.
Do the complete breath exercise (see page 152) whenever you’re feeling stressed, suggests Alice Christensen, founder and executive director of the American Yoga Association. Meditation (see page 153) helps clear your mind and teaches you to relax, she says. For the poses, select three or four from the Daily Routine, which begins on page 606. Christensen recommends varying the poses daily to keep your interest high and to strengthen different parts of your body. Dr. Nezezon says you should include at least one relaxation pose, such as the corpse (page 612), knee squeeze (page 612) or baby (page 618), in your daily yoga routine.
Dr. Nezezon also recommends doing the alternate nostril breath each day as a way of helping you regain emotional balance. For instruction in this breathing technique, see page 623.