Acupuncture May Help PTSD Sufferers

By Lily Casura

April 18, 2008

Healing Combat Trauma

Acupuncture May Help Symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder A pilot study by researchers at the University of Arizona's Department of Psychiatry shows that acupuncture may help people with posttraumatic stress disorder. ...

Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration At Army's Top Medical Facility

Dana Priest and Anne Hull

February 18, 2007

Washington Post

Behind the door of Army Spec. Jeremy Duncan's room, part of the wall is torn and hangs in the air, weighted down with black mold. When the wounded combat engineer stands in his shower and looks up, he can see the bathtub on the floor above through a rotted hole. The entire building, constructed between the world wars, often smells like greasy carry-out. Signs of neglect are everywhere: mouse droppings, belly-up cockroaches, stained carpets, cheap mattresses.

Yearning to Be Whole Again

By Donna St. George

Friday, November 24, 2006

Washington Post

When they called her name, she could not move. Sgt. Leana Nishimura intended to walk up proudly, shake the dignitaries' hands and accept their honors for her service in Iraq-- a special coin, a lapel pin, a glass-encased U.S. flag...

Treating PTSD in Non-Traditional Ways

VFW

by Janice Arenofsky

The Iraq War veteran seated in George Gafner¹s office reported only minor wounds from his time in the Middle East. But emotionally, the soldier was scarred.

Report: PTSD Treatments Need More Study

Oct. 18, 2007

CBS News

There is not enough evidence to tell if most treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder work, says a scientific review that highlights the urgency of finding answers as thousands of suffering veterans return from Iraq.

The Other Wounded

November 6, 2007

The Washington Post

They are the other casualties of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan: spouses -- mostly wives -- of military personnel as well as their children, parents and even siblings struggling with the fear that accompanies combat separations or the wrenching readjustment that often marks the return home. Som...

Editorial: Slogging on the Home Front

October 6, 2007

The New York Times

It’s more painfully clear that wounded soldiers who seek disability care and benefits face bureaucratic chaos worthy of an infernal ring from Dante.

Child Maltreatment in Enlisted Soldiers' Families During Combat-Related Deployments

Deborah A. Gibbs, MSPH; Sandra L. Martin, PhD; Lawrence L. Kupper, PhD; Ruby E. Johnson, MS

August 1, 2007

JAMA

Parental stress is believed to play a critical role in child maltreatment, and deployment is often stressful for military families.

Shelters take many vets of Iraq, Afghan wars

Anna Badkhen, Globe Correspondent

August 7, 2007

The Boston Globe

After Kevin returned from Iraq, he spent most nights lying awake in his Army barracks in Hawaii, clutching a 9mm handgun under his pillow, bracing for an attack that never came.

Trauma treatment turning to needles

Mel Huff

May 7, 2007

Times Argus

Two acupuncturists experienced in treating trauma are offering the simple therapy to Vermont veterans, their families and the families of soldiers currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Pentagon Report Criticizes Troops' Mental-Health Care

Ann Scott Tyson

June 16, 2007

The Washington Post

U.S. troops returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan suffer "daunting and growing" psychological problems -- with nearly 40 percent of soldiers, a third of Marines and half of the National Guard members reporting symptoms -- but the military's cadre of mental-health workers is "woefully inadequate" to meet their needs, a Pentagon task force reported yesterday.

Acupuncture for posttraumatic stress disorder: a randomized controlled pilot trial.

Hollifield M, Sinclair-Lian N, Warner TD, Hammerschlag R.

June 2007

The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the potential efficacy and acceptability of accupuncture for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

For New Orleans, Reviving Health Care System Will Set City’s Future

Leslie Eaton

July 23, 2007

The New York Times

NEW ORLEANS — At the tip of Bayou St. John in the Mid-City neighborhood here, the brown and white bulk of Lindy Boggs Medical Center looms behind a temporary chain-link fence. Nineteen people died at the medical center after Hurricane Katrina, and now the hospital itself is dead, sold to developers who plan to replace it with a shopping mall.

The Limits of Talk

Mary Sykes Wylie

Jan/Feb 2004

Psychology Networker

For more than 20 years, Bessel van der Kolk has been in the forefront of research in the psychobiology of trauma and in the quest for more effective treatments. Now he’s touched off an intense debate about the role of scientific evidence in finding ways to alleviate suffering and the future of the traditional talking cure itself.......

Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration At Army's Top Medical Facility

Dana Priest and Anne Hull

February 18, 2007

Washington Post

Behind the door of Army Spec. Jeremy Duncan's room, part of the wall is torn and hangs in the air, weighted down with black mold. When the wounded combat engineer stands in his shower and looks up, he can see the bathtub on the floor above through a rotted hole. The entire building, constructed between the world wars, often smells like greasy carry-out. Signs of neglect are everywhere: mouse droppings, belly-up cockroaches, stained carpets, cheap mattresses.

In The Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina is one of our nation's worst natural disasters. The loss of life and destruction seems immeasurable. Today, in the aftermath of Katrina, the focus of caregivers must be the stabilization of injury and illness and, ultimately, the preservation of life. As our nation rushes to help, by addressing the physical and safety needs of survivors, we must not overlook the myriad victims of the hidden trauma - traumatic stress.

Treating PTSD in Non-Traditional Ways

VFW

by Janice Arenofsky

The Iraq War veteran seated in George Gafner¹s office reported only minor wounds from his time in the Middle East. But emotionally, the soldier was scarred.

Gone With the Wind

Gary Younge

July 29, 2006

The Guardian

Since hurricane Katrina battered New Orleans almost a year ago, the population has halved. Amid the debris and regret...

Post-Katrina Stress still weighs on New Orleans

February 16, 2006

REUTERS

Up to a third of those who lived through the death and destruction of Hurricane Katrina may be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and cannot find treatment...

Nityamo Lian's PTSD Study Summary

ACUPUNCTURE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF DSM-IV POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER

Tornado Trauma

In Indian country, trauma is not something that happens because of floods or tornadoes, it is something that our people have experienced for generations

The Cost of the Katrina Effect

The wind and rain have died down. But the hurricane left behind a toxic health-care crisis

NEW YORK TIMES MENTIONS AWB PROJECT

In a story published October 20, reporter Christine Hauser mentions our efforts (although not by name). Describing the scene at the Mary Queen of Vietnam Roman Catholic Church, Hauser writes:

On the stage behind the church, volunteers translated FEMA forms for housing aid into Vietnamese. Some people sat quietly in a room off the sanctuary, acupuncture needles splayed in every direction from their ears, scalp, wrists or ankles.
 – from Sustained by Close Ties, Vietnamese Toil to Rebuild

Community Ear Acupuncture

By Cynthia Neipris, L.Ac.

Community ear acupuncture is a highly effective and efficient way of treating a variety of individual and community wide conditions in areas of conflict, disaster or devastation.

TRAUMA PROJECTS GROW IN NEW YORK REGION

By Wendy Henry

Efforts by acupuncturists and ADS activists operating under the name of CRREW (for Community Relief & Rebuilding Through Education &Wellness) continue to bring the healing effects of acu detox to new groups of trauma survivors and associated health professionals. According to Wendy Henry, licensed acupuncturist and NADA member, programs run by the American Red Cross are among the latest to invite more demonstrations of the NADA needling protocol.

Treating Many Where Treatment Is Needed Most

Current and Historic Use of Acupuncture For Post-Traumatic Stress and Crisis Support

By Rachel Toomin, A.P.

Reprinted with the permission of the AOMAlliance

After the September 11 tragedies in New York and Washington D.C., a variety of teams set up treatment sites using acupuncture, the NADA protocol, massage, Reiki and chiropractic to support victims, families, and rescue workers. The results of these types of relief efforts have been profoundly powerful and have consistently opened doors for greater treatment access in the months and years following the supportive integration of acupuncture into the public health arena.

New Orleans endures rise in suicides

Signs of despair are pervasive

By Adam Nossitter

Tuesday, December 27, 2005

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Mental health professionals say this city appears to be experiencing a sharp increase in suicides in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, and interviews and statistics suggest that the rate is now double or more the national and local averages.