Fahad
B. Iqbal
June 18, 2013
BBH 143
Blogpost
#6
Many
psychopharmacologies have been studying Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
and attempting ways to solve this treacherous disorder. Studies have shown that
different types of treatments, typically called exposure therapy, are safe and
effective. In this method the patient, who is suffering from PTSD, repeatedly
attempts to recall the traumatic feeling that is causing the disorder. Exposure
therapy works by helping the patient re-learn the ‘appropriate’ response to the
event that is causing the disorder (Mukherjee, 2009). The downfall for this
approach is that this treatment method can take some time in order to heal the
patient but also 40% of the patients will continue to experience PTSD even
after the treatment. So new studies are now looking into drugs to help speed up
the recovery period from PTSD (Mukherjee, 2009). Some of those drugs include
MDMA (the pharmaceutical version of Ecstasy). MDMA
(3,4-methylenedioxymethamohetamine) is a psychoactive compound that is mostly
known as Ecstasy, is an approved medication to be used in psychotherapy
(Mukherjee, 2009). Psychiatrists have administered low amounts of MDMA to
patients of PTSD and seen that the patient will be more emotional engaged in
conservations and it also improves tolerance for recall and the processing of
the painful memories.
Three reasons were discovered by the psychiatrists as
to why MDMA possibly can be used to cure PTSD; first, ecstasy is known to cause
in increase of the hormone oxytocin (which is involved in love, empathy and
social closeness). The second, is that Ecstasy effects two areas of the brain,
the amygdala (inhibits fear response) and prefrontal cortex (increases
emotional control). Lastly, ecstasy increases the release of two other
hormones, noradrenaline and cortisol. Both are known to be very essential in
emotional learning, fear extinction (basis of which PTSD relies) and balance a
variety of emotions (Mukherjee, 2009).
Ecstasy combined with psychotherapy is a treatment
that is already being used in clinical trials to help patients cure PTSD. The
cure for PTSD is a ongoing study and may take many years before a person can be
completely free of PTSD. This research was very critical in studying PTSD. Most
drugs are thought to always be ‘bad’ but this is a good example of a hard, club
drug being put to good use. Hopefully one day, through the use of ‘dangerous’
drugs, cures of diseases and disorders will be found and used effectively on a
regular basis.
Mukherjee, Mithu. 2009. ‘Ecstasy
could help patients with post-traumatic stress disorder’. EurekAlert!.
Retrieved June 17, 2013.
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