If You Have PTSD, There Is a New Treatment

Monday, June 17, 2019
I am posting this information simply to spread the news around.  I saw this on the TV show 60 Minutes.  I have a strong sympathy for soldiers who go to war to defend our country, and then come home with severe psychological problems.

There is a new treatment for PTSD.  It is called "SGB".  It is an anesthetic.  There is a ganglion of nerves in the neck, and researchers have found that if they anesthetize this ganglion, it has an instant calming effect.  The SGB leaves the system after a day or so, but the calming effect continues for up to six months (after which you may need a booster shot).  According to the show, this treatment works for about 70% of soldiers who have PTSD.  Some PTSD sufferers feel instantly relieved of suffering.

This may sound like a miracle, but to me it sounds logical.  Nerves can become over-stimulated, and once they do, they can cause all kinds of trouble.  For example, I have over-stimulated nerves in my heart that cause periodic episodes of palpitations, which can be life-threatening.  It would seem that the chaos of war can cause this ganglion of nerves in the neck to become over-stimulated to the point where it won't calm down, keeping the PTSD alive.

The show, which I saw in June 2019, said that only about a dozen of the VA hospitals now offer this treatment, but it should spread to other hospitals.  If you are a veteran with PTSD, you should contact your VA hospital.

Incidentally, SGB is not a narcotic, just an anesthetic.  You can't become addicted to it.  In the process of injecting the SGB, they first inject a red dye to identify the exact location of the ganglia.  Frankly, I would be more concerned about the red dye than I would about the anesthetic.

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