Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a widely studied psychiatric disorder that is said to affect 7 or 8 out of every 100 people in the world. Research shows that about 8 million adults suffer from some form of post-traumatic stress every year due to various reasons.
A person suffers from PTSD when he or she fails to recover from a gruesome experience like an accident, natural disaster, war, terrorist attack, rape, or assault. This condition often lasts for months, even years, and can be triggered at the slightest mention of the event, bringing back memories of the trauma accompanied by intense emotional and physical reactions.
Like with any other mental disorder, PTSD also needs to be treated with a combination of therapies and medications if needed. Recent studies show that psychotherapy is an effective method in treating PTSD, providing long term relief to the patient.
At The Hundred, we believe in the science behind various psychotherapy techniques such as cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) as they primarily focus on helping individuals develop better thought processes and engage in positive behavioral patterns. Unlike traditional mental health care practices that recommend the use of antidepressants and other medications to manage PTSD, our experts train the patients to recover through mind healing techniques. Let us learn more about it in this blog.
A different approach to PTSD
Our experts recommend CBT, a type of psychotherapy that helps the individual face their trauma objectively. As most people suffer from PTSD by suppressing their memories of the terrifying event instead of dealing with it healthily, they fail to recover from the trauma for years.
During a CBT session, the patient is encouraged to identify, understand, and cope with their trauma by changing their thought process and behavior patterns. The psychotherapy sessions focus on helping the patient develop skills that help them deal with their underlying fear and practice the same, even outside the four walls of the therapist’s office. Over the course of 12 to 16 weeks, the patient would have developed enough skills and mental strength to overcome the trigger factor and look at the event from a different perspective.
By gently encouraging these individuals to remember their traumatic experience in a safe environment during a psychotherapy session, they gradually become immune to the fear and learn to look at the event objectively. As most PTSD sufferers also have a lot of repressed guilt that distorts the actual event, the therapist also encourages cognitive restructuring, where the patient learns to look at the event differently and get a realistic perspective of it.
Why should you go to experts?
PTSD is a mental disorder that requires careful and tailored treatment. Only a trained mental health care professional with experience in treating PTSD should be approached for best results. Our expert psychotherapist at The Hundred is a certified professional who takes time to understand the patient’s specific needs and provide personalized treatment. PTSD patients, for instance, may require a private space to openly talk about their trauma. This is why we recommend one-on-one sessions rather than group therapy to help patients deal with their specific traumas.
For more information on psychotherapy sessions, contact our wellness centre in Dubai today.
