SILVRmind2020

We would like to extend our gratitude to the University and PREMIUM team who have provided us with the wonderful opportunity to enhance our knowledge and skills. The workshops were indeed enlightening and working as a team in a project has equipped us with confidence to face the real employment challenges. Our special thanks to Fabienne who has always been very kind and supportive.

Today is the last FactFriday. Although a little bit sad that this has come to an end, I was very happy to share project-related facts with you in the last few months. The main messages of SILVRmind2020′s FactFriday were:

PTSD is a psychological disorder that needs mental health care,

Effective treatments are available, such as exposure therapy and EMDR,

VR makes those treatments more effective and accessible.

Thank you for reading and liking our posts! And hope to see you all at the closing ceremony!😃 

Vivian Kulaga shares her experience about the enlightening and healing process of EMDR. She had suffered from trauma for a very long time but later on  became a trauma therapist herself. 

Previously on this blog we discussed EMDR therapy and the use of VR to make EMDR more immersive and effective. We also discussed that EMDR does not have to include horizontal eye movements to be effective. Other kinds of stimulation and tasks do also work, as long as the patient’s working memory is taxed. 

Below you see the VR-EMDR product of SilVRmind. The virtual room on the right is what patients see through the VR glasses. With the panel on the left, the therapist can adjust the speed, colour, and movement of the ball to fit the patient’s therapeutic needs. Patients recall their traumatic experience while at same time following the ball with their eyes. Extra tasks can be included, for example, pressing a button when the shape of the ball changes or naming the colour of the ball. Moreover, auditory beeps can be added to tax the working memory even more. This lowers the emotional value of the traumatic memory, thereby helping patients to overcome their PTSD.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is not the person refusing to let go of the past. PTSD is not a choice and not an inability or weakness. 

So far on Motivational Mondays, we have understood what mental health is, the warning signs of mental illness, the spread and uniqueness of mental illness, stigmatization, the impact of stigma and the benefits of therapy. During this final month, we will be sharing the process of EMDR therapy and few success stories.

Amygdala is normally involved in stress responses (fight or flight) to danger, becomes overactive when patients think of their traumatic memories. Therefore, patients may show fight/flight responses as if they are experiencing the traumatic event all over again. 

Hypothalamus is overactive. This results in an imbalance in stress hormones, such as cortisol. 

Hippocampus, involved in memory, is affected.

Prefrontal Cortex: dysfunctional thinking and decision making, and inappropriate responses to situations.

Psychotropic drugs can be effective to treat some side-symptoms of PTSD. For example, antidepressants, like SSRIs, can be used to alleviate depressive symptoms. Anti-anxiety drugs, like benzodiazepines, are sometimes used to alleviate anxiety and stress. But these drugs are less effective and easily abused because of their addictive properties. Substance and alcohol abuse are already a common problem in PTSD patients. In addition, combining alcohol and anti-anxiety drugs is physically dangerous.

Is there a medicine for PTSD? 

No, these drugs do not treat PTSD. They only alleviate the side-symptoms. When patients quit using the drug, the symptoms will return. Therefore, these drugs should always be combined with some kind of psychotherapy, such as exposure therapy or EMDR. 

To conclude, drugs can contribute to the treatment of PTSD, but it is not a quick-fix. 

Your “team dynamic” is the way your team works together: it includes the role each individual plays and the relationships among team members.

If you want to know more about team dynamics, have a look at https://missioncapital.org/insights-and-ideas/blog/understanding-team-dynamics/!