A fact is a fact. Memory is a fact. War is a fact. Unfortunately for many veterans the latter two facts collide.
"Every soldier at some point leaves the battlefield, but the battlefield never leaves the soldier."
After soldiers return state side, and stand down from 24/7 battle readiness, vivid images of missions they experienced begin to flash in their minds. These mental images are normal and are termed “flashbacks”.
Neurological research has proven that the brain processes
traumatic memory differently than non-traumatic memory. The human brain’s job
in reference to non-traumatic memory is that of order and closure. Simply put,
the brain receives all the information from an event; it processes all the images,
smells and sounds, achieves closure with the associated emotions and then put
the event into long-term storage for future retrieval and replay.
When the brain is faced with an intense traumatic event,
the processing is put on hold as well as the closure of associated emotions. The
brain’s normal function of order and storage is not achieved and the imprint of
the event remains active. At some point, the brain will bring the imprint back
to consciousness in order to process the event, make emotional closure and
integrate it into long-term storage.
Soldiers from every service are highly trained
professionals and when in battle mode, their brain responds and functions
differently. In the heat of battle a soldier’s brain is so focused on
completion the mission that there is no time to process its impact or make
closure.
An example of this can be seen through the experience of
a close friend of mine who returned from the Vietnam War. He was well decorated
and was involved in many battles during his two tours in country. Initially his
transition back into civilian life went smoothly. He lived with his wife and
went back to work in his chosen profession. He lived in a large city where the
police relied heavily on helicopters to patrol and less on squad cars. One evening it all changed. A police
helicopter began to circle low over neighborhood looking for robbery suspect.
That night the police helicopter triggered him into a combat flashback. In his mind he was back in Vietnam
Many stories just like the one above will
happen again and again. America has
a new generation of veterans (289,328) that have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan
Is there something safe that can help eliminate flashbacks?
In these days of specialization, why isn't there a teachable skill that would target one memory at a time and help a veteran to process through combat flashbacks one by one?
Is there something safe that can help eliminate flashbacks?
In these days of specialization, why isn't there a teachable skill that would target one memory at a time and help a veteran to process through combat flashbacks one by one?
Well, there is. A guided protocol called
Rapid Reduction Technique®© (RRT) was developed to reduce the effects of
traumatic flashbacks and memories for women who have been traumatized and
abused. The RRT has been used and studied with this population for the past 9
years. RRT has been successful helping survivors reduce the intensity of the
flashbacks, help in the processing all the images, smells and
sounds, achieves closure with the associated emotions and facilitate storage
into long-term memory. RRT®© is a
teachable and safe skill which works on one memory at a time. RRT®© is based on
revisiting, not reliving or re-experiencing. Flashbacks are an attempt of the
brain to achieve order and processing. The RRT®© protocol
teaches a survivor to bring a recurring flashback up to consciousness safely,
work with the emotions associated with it and assist the brain in processing
it.
Clinical Study
One year ago a pilot study was conducted to see the effectiveness of the Rapid Reduction Technique™©. The study looked at seven areas of intrusive traumatic flashbacks and memories. Those areas were; inability to function, strength of memory pain, degree of triggering, level of emotional, physical, spiritual and audio pain. 66 women in an inpatient setting with diagnoses of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) participated. All 66 women were experiencing dysfunction in their lives due to flashbacks and memories from childhood and adulthood trauma and abuse. All areas studied showed a significant decrease in level of pain related to their chosen flashbacks or memories.
One year ago a pilot study was conducted to see the effectiveness of the Rapid Reduction Technique™©. The study looked at seven areas of intrusive traumatic flashbacks and memories. Those areas were; inability to function, strength of memory pain, degree of triggering, level of emotional, physical, spiritual and audio pain. 66 women in an inpatient setting with diagnoses of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) participated. All 66 women were experiencing dysfunction in their lives due to flashbacks and memories from childhood and adulthood trauma and abuse. All areas studied showed a significant decrease in level of pain related to their chosen flashbacks or memories.
Within the studied population of the 66
women there were 2 veterans of the Desert Storm War and 1 contractor who served
as support for the military during the Iraq War. All three had chosen combat or
wartime memories and reported significant reduction in the intensity and
associated pain.
Case Studies
Let’s look at the case of one Navy veteran in the pilot study. Her family had a long line of members who had served in the military. She served 10 years in the military and saw combat in the Desert Storm War. Her flashback was a result of one of her combat experiences. While part of a large supply convoy traveling intoIraq
Reinforcements helped them to win the firefight, get the trucks and fallen brothers-in-arms out. After months of physical rehabilitation, an honorable discharge with commendations and return to civilian life, flashbacks of the ambush began to surface. The reoccurring flashbacks caused her to experience agitation, guilt, bouts of deep depression, constant anxiety, and shame for not completing her mission. She was overwhelmed with severe regret for not bringing all her soldiers back alive. She went through years of psychiatric hospitalizations and medication, yet the flashbacks continued. Her everyday life became dysfunctional, relationships failed; she experienced sleepless nights and was unable to hold a job. Her days were full of anxiety, fear, and pain.
Let’s look at the case of one Navy veteran in the pilot study. Her family had a long line of members who had served in the military. She served 10 years in the military and saw combat in the Desert Storm War. Her flashback was a result of one of her combat experiences. While part of a large supply convoy traveling into
Reinforcements helped them to win the firefight, get the trucks and fallen brothers-in-arms out. After months of physical rehabilitation, an honorable discharge with commendations and return to civilian life, flashbacks of the ambush began to surface. The reoccurring flashbacks caused her to experience agitation, guilt, bouts of deep depression, constant anxiety, and shame for not completing her mission. She was overwhelmed with severe regret for not bringing all her soldiers back alive. She went through years of psychiatric hospitalizations and medication, yet the flashbacks continued. Her everyday life became dysfunctional, relationships failed; she experienced sleepless nights and was unable to hold a job. Her days were full of anxiety, fear, and pain.
During one of her hospitalizations, she had
the opportunity to volunteer for the Rapid Reduction Technique®© pilot study.
She picked her ambush flashback to use in the study. On her pre-test, on a
scale of 0 to 4, with “0” being no pain or inability to function due to her
flashback and “4” being intense pain or inability to function, she rated all
study areas at 4. She stated that the
ambush flashback had caused a “loss of dignity, honor and direction.” Reporting
on the post-test at conclusion of experiencing the Rapid Reduction Technique on
her ambush flashback, she rated all 7 areas studied at “0”.
What grew out of the pilot study from the
success of the two veterans and one contractor participating was that Rapid
Reduction Technique had possible military application. A military guided
protocol called Rapid Reduction Technique - Combat®©
(RRT-C®©) was developed that would help
male and female soldiers. RRT-C®© has already helped two male Vietnam Veterans.
One
of the two was a 62 year old male Vietnam Veteran who had his voice box
shattered when he was shot in the neck during a battle at the age of 19. Years
after his return to civilian life, he started to experience severe flashbacks
of that battle. He reported that the flashbacks would cause him to have
increased physical pain in his neck as well as emotional pain. He went through
years of anxiety, fear, worthlessness and a feeling that he let himself and his
buddies down by being shot. His life became very dysfunctional. He lost his
marriage, and his ability to hold a job. He said he felt “worthless, disgraced
and an outcast.” He gave up and isolated himself from society. He resorted to drugs
and alcohol to medicate his pain and cope with life. He went through years of
being homeless with many admissions to psychiatric hospitalizations and
substance abuse programs. Though it was difficult for him to communicate with
others through his electronic larynx, he volunteered to experience the Rapid
Reduction Technique – Combat®©. He reported at the conclusion of his RRT-C®© experience that the emotional,
physical and mental intensity of the flashback was significantly reduced. Week later,
his memory of the battle only came up if he recalled it, and he did not
experience any pain. He gratefully stated for the “first time in my life since
I left Vietnam, I am finally free.”
Of course Rapid Reduction Technique–C®© is not a cure for PTSD, and
more study on the RRT-C®© should be done, but there is promise. RRT-C®© has proven so far to be effective
for veterans. It can be taught to veterans so they can take command of their combat
flashbacks and finally complete their mission, one battlefield memory at a
time.
________________________________________________
Clinical Research Update on RRT®©
Rapid Reduction Technique®© or RRT®© was clinically
studied in a 3 year research project at a major university and shown to be clinically effective with eliminating the emotional charge, intensity and triggers as described in the pilot study. A surprising discovery as a result of the clinical study is that RRT®© relieved other Post-traumatic Stress Disorder symptoms.
If you would like more specific information from the study, please contact me at Tollefsonenterprises@gmail.com or go to my website
If you would like more specific information from the study, please contact me at Tollefsonenterprises@gmail.com or go to my website
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