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News SGB PTSD Treatment Article

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After 25 years of looking for the right diagnosis, I was finally diagnosed with Complex PTSD only this past year (it is a brand new diagnostic term, hopefully in the DSM-V) and that was when I sought the SGB treatment....knowing nothing else so far had really helped. I do not have dissassociative disorder, however.
Is C-PTSD different from complex trauma? In any case, the injection stopped all my agitation and allowed me finally move past recurring trauma memories that haunted me since early chidhood. I could never have gone to a movie theater before, as it would trigger entrapment-related anxiety attacks......I took my kids to the movies twice this week and never worried a bit.
I do not think that the people who successfully receive the "Chicago Block" technique of the injection will ever be uncertain if it worked. In my experience, and from what others have shared, the effect is immensely profound and more than obvious. It even has its own adjustment period due to the huge perspective shift it can bring. It is a sensation that no medication ever came close to providing me, so I hope it will be an easily distinguishable result, regardless of what meds an SGB patient may have been on. Maybe Aj and IchBin can confirm. And I will let Lipov know that you are available if he is looking for "after" testimonials, Aj.....thank you.

Regarding PTSD and the military, the government has already been paying for therapies and meds for all PTSD soldiers and recognizes it completely. The US government estimate to cover military PTSD care is $650 Billion for the next 20 years (am I am hopeful the SGB procedure will save a ton of that money, if adopted). I don't think that the new condolence letters were a result of the govenment's wallet. Upon speaking with staffers for my Senator and Congressman, the concesus seems to be that the old rule of no letters was simply overlooked, and those who should know these rules were equally shocked it had never been addressed, and happy to see it addressed at last.
Obama was one of the first to push for SGB to be researched by the Pentagon, in fact.

The other large part of the problem for PTSD vets is the stigma that its has carried. I hear Vets speak at town hall meeting all the time of the shame and difficulty the diagnosis itself adds to their already difficult survival. Sadly, PTSD is one health issue that carries its own new set of anxieties by virtue of its history, stigma and misunderstanding.
Most folks think of it as a psychological disorder, when the research and applied science to the new SGB procedure proves that PTSD is not psychological but a physical, visible, biological overactivity (although it affects emotions, as many bio-abnormalities can, such as hormone or glucose abnormalities for example). This in itself is enormous change.
 
I agree wholeheartedly. I cried when I first found out that something called cPTSD existed -- tears of relief that what I was going through is real and not my fault. I have 3 different kinds of anti-anxiety medication, wellbutrin, st. john's wort, 5-htp, N-acetyl cysteine, and beta blockers. These are of course in addition to alcohol, the perennial anti-anxiety medication. Of any of them, the beta blockers came the closest to giving me a glimpse of what it might be like to be normal, but alas, it was always transient, and I would be right back at square one when it wore off. In a psychology class once we watched a video of a man who had a specific case of brain damage in which he only remembered things for about 10 seconds, and so he would frequently say things like "I feel like I'm alive for the first time, it's quite odd, really". The person interviewing him kept asking questions, and he kept answering with statements containing surprise, excitement, and a little bit of confusion about this world he found himself in. I would argue that for me, SGB was akin to this. It's much more than a permanent version of what I felt when I took beta-blockers; in fact, just today I ran out of words trying to describe to my therapist what life is like now compared to pre-SGB.

3 out of 4 therapists I've seen assumed the unfortunate "it's all psychological" stance with me, which was not only a big waste of my time, it was the wrong way to see PTSD. The "mind/brain" split is no more useful than "walk/legs". But you know, the beauty of progress is rejecting bad ideas for good ones, and I think research on PTSD is headed in the right direction.

P.S. Something that makes me happy: my therapist is seeing another patient with PTSD and he decided to share SGB with him, and so he forwarded Lipov's articles I had sent him along to this other patient.He tells me he will discuss features of his work with me with him, too.

Rock on.
 
After 25 years of looking for the right diagnosis, I was finally diagnosed with Complex PTSD only this past year (it is a brand new diagnostic term, hopefully in the DSM-V) and that was when I sought the SGB treatment....knowing nothing else so far had really helped. I do not have dissassociative disorder, however.
Is C-PTSD different from complex trauma?
Kim, from what you have written here, I am a little confused at what you're saying.

Firstly, there is no such diagnosis as CPTSD, as there is zero diagnostic criterion to diagnose it in the first place. CPTSD got rejected from the DSM V long ago, and subsequent submissions. CPTSD application was targeted at PTSD + Dissociation, so again, really unsure why anyone would even mention it to you if you didn't have dissociation to begin with.

Yes, CPTSD is complex trauma, as there is no such diagnosis as CPTSD.

Are you confusing Chronic PTSD as CPTSD? CPTSD was a proposed acronym for Complex PTSD, meaning, long term childhood abuse typically, which encompasses dissociation and borderline personality disorder / Axis II disorders. The reason why it has been permanently rejected is that it failed to accurately capture the correct cross-section of diagnoses that are typically applicable to complex trauma cases.
 
Hi Anthony.....do a Wiki for Complex PTSD and you can read about it there. I last understood that Judith Herman in particular is fighting to get the criteria in the DSM-V, which will be published in May 2013. In nutshell, "A differentiation between the diagnostic category of C-PTSD and that of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been suggested. C-PTSD better describes the pervasive negative impact of chronic repetitive trauma than does PTSD alone."

There is no official diagnosis of C-PTSD right now, technically, but I believe most therapists believe it to apply to many of us with long term abuses or trauma exposure. Until C-PTSD, the usual category many of us were dumped in was Borderline Personality Disorder - a diagnosis I personally never connected to very well. I was not aware that this proposed diagnosis has yet been officially rejected and I hope it is not. In any case, I fit the criteria (officially accepted or not) much more comfortably and regardless of what is technically out there. I believe in my instincts and I connect best to these C-PTSD criteria.....or I used to, anyway.

Interestingly enough, the acronym "PTSD" is now being challenged by Lipov and others due to the science behind the SGB and the ability to view PTSD activity in the insular cortex with imagery. The proposed new acronym is CCI, which stands for Complex Cortical Injury and is proposed to include the sub categories of PTSD and TBI (traumatic brain injury) as they share common traits in producing real changes to the cortex. Again, this destigmatizes the idea that we may have a "syndrome" or a "disorder". PTSD is an injury to the brain.

According to my own experiences and research, (and this is also the feelings of Lipov), the psych community is one of the more resistant groups of folks to this new procedure. The common reply from psychiatrists and therapists alike is that the treatment is a fluke. (BTW - Lipov puts the success rate currently at 90%). I cannot tell you how disheartening and infuriating it is for me whenever I have approached anyone in the psych field to witness their immediate resistance to this treatment. Medical doctors typically are curious and accepting. I rejoice in the fact that one day PTSD will be dealt with more as a medical condition, just to remove it from the disdain and skepticism dealt by psychotherapists and psychiatrists. My own therapists did suggests that the SGB treatment threatens the training of psych professionals - but even she got defensive, almost angrily pointing out that meds have helped a lot of people, as if I was not aware. In my opinion, yes, meds can and do help, but I feel instinctually that meds should also be avoided if at all possible. If most SSRI drugs have a 50-60% success rate -along with an approx. 30% placebo range - and after 2-8 weeks of waiting, then I still side with a 90% success rate procedure (albeit with few patients) and a 30 minute result window. Of course, as one who knows the power of the SGB, I am permanently biased. :) Drug failure also tends to build a sense of hopelessness......no doubt many of us have had "bad" meds where the side effects were worse than the intended benefit.

Ich bin....Yay!....the feeling of knowing that your info might help another in need is truly the best! Good for you for planting seeds.....I hope you continue to educate others. Rock on indeed!

<Please post in forum default font style. Artistic posting is for Chit Chat only. Amethist>
 
Hi Kim, again, you may want to read more updated information on this, which we have on our wiki: [DLMURL]https://www.ptsdforum.org/c/wiki/complex-posttraumatic-stress-disorder/[/DLMURL]

If you read wikipedia's commenting page, you will actually also cite similar discussion on experts asking them to remove it from the wikipedia, as the APA have made a final, outright decision, and CPTSD will not be.

There are DSM V discussions in this forum already which I have used the appropriate citations to such information and future possibilities based on what the APA have published and the DSM V's now currency in field trials.
 
I found a couple of recent threads I started which contains more facts:
  • [DLMURL]https://www.ptsdforum.org/c/threads/the-future-for-complex-trauma-diagnosis-treatment.18316/[/DLMURL]
  • [DLMURL]https://www.ptsdforum.org/c/threads/ptsd-will-cease-being-an-anxiety-disorder-dsm-5.17091/[/DLMURL]
 
Hello to all forum members. I wanted to know if anyone has made ​​the block for PTSD and has previously used cocaine frequently during a longer or shorter period.
I know because I suffer from chronic PTSD and psychiatric drugs for almost three years that I no longer work. For about a year ago I used cocaine frequently, and I've read that dr. Lipov think, even without this data, this history of consumption could affect the effectiveness of treatment. So most grateful if someone who has made the block and have that background, can you tell me how things have gone, if it worked or not.
I hope your answers impatiently. A big hug for everyone and lots of encouragement, no never forsake.
 
I have PTSD for a year and two month , before the ptsd i tried cocainin ,cauple of times. nothing serious.
I probably Have serious Ptsd , because i have neurological complications that came with the ptsd like hyperacusis , i see color more intense and fatigue and insomnia all starated with the ptsd. i did the block couple of months ago and it was not effective ,but i don't think it is because the cocaine use , but cause i didnt really abused it just tried it for 5 or 6 times....
maybe it work with some type of ptsd, but not with others. dont know.
 
Your stories have made me cry and given me hope. I introduced myself earlier in another thread (never join forums before, so forgive me if I seem like a complete newbie!) I have had PTSD for as long as I can remember. Just agreed with my phychologist to go get on meds, which I have strongly resisted for years. In researching today, I found articles for SGB, and they led me to this site. I am cautiously optimistic, and I know that the treatment is available in my area, and at pain specialists that I have already been to for injuries from an assault. I am in Phoenix, and I am almost sure that I am going to make an appointment for this process. I can't see (aside from the obvious risks) what I have to lose. I think I should do this without taking the step toward meds, so I can be a PTSD non-medicated guinea pig. :eek: I will keep you all posted, and PLEASE, those of you that have had the procedure done, keep posting as well.
 
In my opinion, if you can afford the SGB out of pocket, it is a definite "risk" worth trying.

Newer X-Ray guidance makes the injection very safe. In a 1991 study of 45,000 SGB injections in Germany (prior to x-ray guidance) 14 patients had seizures and 9 got air in their lungs. No one died and all were treated for complications successfully. The final assessment was that any complication was rare, and as I said this was before x-ray guidance and at the C7 injection site. The Chicago Block procedure itself is safer than a traditional SGB as it is done one vertebra higher (C6), making it even more difficult for a respiratory complication.
You will know quite quickly after if the injection has worked, and will at least then know what course of action to take next.

Obviously the screening for any active PTSD trial is going to be standardized as much as possible (the only official current federally funded trial I am aware of is for PTSD Navy veterans only in San Diego), but the happy handful of us who have sought out and had the injection at this forum were not screened and have had remarkable results. Every day I continue to be amazed and thankful for how different my world is since March 24 and my Chicago Block SGB........life is completely changed and relaxation abounds. Every day feels like a gift. All trigger events are gone, and all vivid trauma memories as well. How grateful I am to have had the courage to make the leap and probably save my own life.
You can choose to wait another 3 years for this treatment to make its way into the mainstream, best case scenario, or you can choose to take a chance to possibly get profoundly better now with some research, courage and determination, it is as simple as that.
I understand objectivity, but for any who wish to downplay, question and disregard this treatment, I feel that is unfair to those of us right here who can obviously speak to its significance and immense saving grace. We are not flukes, we are real people with real results. We may be lives saved, certainly we are lives that have been eased of a tremendous burden, and that is nothing to balk at. After doing literally all the meds and all the other therapies for 25 years, they cannot begin to hold a candle to the relief I have now from that one shot in the neck.
I see no "down side" to being optimistic about this treatment. Is the concern that optimism will lead to dissapointment? That worry can only be solved by actually making the decision for yourself to have it done. Until then, worry and fear are your biggest enemies in the healing process.
There are no guarantees in life that anything will work 100% for all, but there are opportunities to take a leap and see what happens. There needs to be at the very least a positive mood based on what we few brave recipients at this forum can bring to this discussion right now. Even if this treatment declines in acceptance for some reason later, no one will ever be able to tell me "I told you so" ...not after what I have experienced by taking a chance and achieving a daily happiness I never knew existed before. Just because the treatment is new, does not mean it is insignificant.
Even in its infant stages, I feel this treatment is far superior to others tried so far inasmuch as MEG imagery can show the PTSD activity where it lives in the brain now and then show its absence after the injection. I am not aware of any such procedure that can be so easily confirmed to have targeted the proper PTSD adrenaline-producing neurons, and as quickly as within 30 minutes. The real results are spoken by the patient, and usually with amazement and soaring optimism. .
 
I just received my reports from the pain specialist I had seen previously. The procedure he wanted to do was "a right-sided C5-C6, C6-C7 transforaminal epidural steroid injections". This was in late 2008 and was to treat the injuries I had sustained in the assault, not for PTSD purposes. We did not discuss PTSD at that time. I am going to make another appointment with him to discuss this.
 
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