When a person’s thoughts start to stray, they can tend to go in one of two directions. Sometimes people find themselves dreaming of an upcoming vacation or looking forward to a get-together with friends . . . . . . or, maybe they’re distracted by worries about approaching deadlines or unpaid bills. Even though the…

Could greater resilience reduce a person’s need for health care services? James E. Stahl, MD, MPH, and a team of researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital Benson-Henry Institute (BHI), noted that poor psychological and physical resilience is often associated with an increased use of healthcare services. Since research consistently shows that mind-body interventions can be…

The treatment of trauma can be some of the most complex work practitioners face. And for years, this challenge was complicated by not having a clear picture of the impact that trauma has on the brain. But scientific advances within just the past few years have opened the eyes of practitioners to what actually happens…

Does serious illness increase the risk of developing PTSD? We wrote about this topic back in 2011. At that time, a study in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons reported that 20-51% of patients who suffered musculoskeletal injuries went on to develop PTSD. Another study, from the Journal of Psychosomatic Research, found…

How crucial is the power of touch in developing a healthy sense of self-esteem . . . . . . and what role do these play in how people respond to fear? To answer these questions, Dr. Sander L. Koole and a team of researchers at VU University Amsterdam in the Netherlands conducted a series…

Trauma’s victims are often among the most vulnerable in society . . . . . . especially when they include children. When trauma occurs at a young age, children can face biological effects that change the way their brains are developing. This includes parts of the brain that are critical for processing emotions like trust,…