Table of Contents
What type of therapy is best for PTSD?
For PTSD, cognitive therapy often is used along with exposure therapy. Exposure therapy. This behavioral therapy helps you safely face both situations and memories that you find frightening so that you can learn to cope with them effectively. Exposure therapy can be particularly helpful for flashbacks and nightmares. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the most effective treatment for PTSD. CBT usually involves meeting with a therapist weekly for up to four months. The two most effective types of CBT for PTSD are Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Prolonged Exposure (PE). The 2017 VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guideline for PTSD recommends trauma-focused psychotherapy as the first-line treatment for PTSD over pharmacotherapy (1). For patients who prefer pharmacotherapy or who do not have access to trauma-focused psychotherapy, medications remain a treatment option. This is a form of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) specifically adapted for PTSD. NICE recommends that you are offered 8–12 regular sessions of around 60–90 minutes, seeing the same therapist at least once a week. See our pages on CBT for more information about this therapy.
What is the latest treatment for PTSD?
Currently, the gold standard for PTSD treatment is trauma-focused psychotherapy, which can include cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), cognitive processing therapy and imaginal exposure. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is to gold standard treatment for PTSD, with a wealth of research supporting it as the most effective treatment for the disorder. Most individuals with PTSD no longer meet the criteria for the disorder after as few as 12 sessions of trauma-focused CBT. Figures on its success rate with PTSD and C-PTSD vary – this is as a result of the trauma itself, comorbidities (other conditions the person has), and other factors, however, some studies show 61% to 82.4% of participants treated with CBT lost their PTSD diagnosis. Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy, or REBT, is actually the earliest form of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. CBT has changed over time and looks different today than it did during its origin. REBT aims to ultimately alter a person’s underlying belief about themselves, those around them, or life in general.
What is first line therapy for PTSD?
Trauma-focused psychotherapy as first line – For most adults with PTSD we suggest first-line treatment with a trauma-focused psychotherapy that includes exposure rather than a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor [SSRI] or serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor [SNRI]) (Grade 2C). Sertraline, fluoxetine, paroxetine, and venlafaxine all have well controlled trials demonstrating their benefits in numerous patients. Second line options include mirtazapine, prazosin (for nightmares), TCAs, nefazodone, and MAOIs. These agents have all demonstrated some benefit in the treatment of PTSD. CBT is a type of psychotherapy that has consistently been found to be the most effective treatment of PTSD both in the short term and the long term. For depression, anxiety, OCD, phobias and PTSD, research has shown that CBT tends to be the more effective treatment. For borderline personality disorder, self-harm behaviors and chronic suicidal ideation, DBT tends to be the better choice.
What techniques are used for PTSD?
(1) The CPG recommends individual trauma-focused psychotherapies, particularly Prolonged Exposure (PE), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) as the most effective treatments for PTSD. Currently, the gold standard for PTSD treatment is trauma-focused psychotherapy, which can include cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), cognitive processing therapy and imaginal exposure. The 2017 VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guideline for PTSD recommends trauma-focused psychotherapy as the first-line treatment for PTSD over pharmacotherapy (1). For patients who prefer pharmacotherapy or who do not have access to trauma-focused psychotherapy, medications remain a treatment option. The components of TF-CBT are similar to PE and CPT. They include exposure and teaching skills to manage trauma-related thoughts and feeling in new, more helpful ways. However, TF-CBT also includes parent-specific sessions and parent-child sessions that address the unique needs of child survivors of trauma.
How is cognitive therapy used for PTSD?
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is one specific type of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. It is a 12-session psychotherapy for PTSD. CPT teaches you how to evaluate and change the upsetting thoughts you have had since your trauma. By changing your thoughts, you can change how you feel. What are examples of cognitive behavioral therapy? Examples of CBT techniques might include the following: Exposing yourself to situations that cause anxiety, like going into a crowded public space. Journaling about your thoughts throughout the day and recording your feelings about your thoughts. Trauma-focused psychotherapy as first line – For most adults with PTSD we suggest first-line treatment with a trauma-focused psychotherapy that includes exposure rather than a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor [SSRI] or serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor [SNRI]) (Grade 2C). CBT seeks to give patients the ability to recognize when their thoughts might become troublesome, and gives them techniques to redirect those thoughts. DBT helps patients find ways to accept themselves, feel safe, and manage their emotions to help regulate potentially destructive or harmful behaviors. CBT is based on the cognitive model of mental illness, initially developed by Beck (1964). In its simplest form, the cognitive model ‘hypothesises that people’s emotions and behaviours are influenced by their perceptions of events. Two of the earliest forms of Cognitive behavioral Therapy were Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy ( REBT ), developed by Albert Ellis in the 1950s, and Cognitive Therapy, developed by Aaron T. Beck in the 1960s.
What is the best assessment tool for PTSD?
The Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS-5) is based on the DSM-5 and is the gold standard in PTSD assessment. It can be administered by clinicians and clinical researchers (or appropriately trained paraprofessionals) who have a working knowledge of PTSD. The CAPS is the gold standard in PTSD assessment. The CAPS-5 is a 30-item structured interview that can be used to: Make current (past month) diagnosis of PTSD. The PCL-5 is a 20-item self-report measure that assesses the 20 DSM-5 symptoms of PTSD. The PCL-5 has a variety of purposes, including: Monitoring symptom change during and after treatment. Currently, the gold standard for PTSD treatment is trauma-focused psychotherapy, which can include cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), cognitive processing therapy and imaginal exposure. Figures on its success rate with PTSD and C-PTSD vary – this is as a result of the trauma itself, comorbidities (other conditions the person has), and other factors, however, some studies show 61% to 82.4% of participants treated with CBT lost their PTSD diagnosis.
Is CBT first line treatment for PTSD?
Most guidelines consider both psychological and pharmacological therapies as first-line in PTSD. All but one guideline recommended cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) as first-line psychological treatment, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) as first-line pharmacological treatment. Medication can help provide relief from symptoms, such as anxiety or depression, associated with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Psychiatrists at NYU Langone may prescribe antidepressants, mood stabilizers, antianxiety medications, and alpha-1 blockers for the treatment of PTSD. Both CBT and BT try to manage pain by addressing the associated psychological and practical processes. CBT involves the avoidance of negative thoughts. BT helps patients to understand how they can change their behaviour in order to reduce pain. If CBT is recommended, you’ll usually have a session with a therapist once a week or once every 2 weeks. The course of treatment usually lasts for between 6 and 20 sessions, with each session lasting 30 to 60 minutes.