Post Traumatic Stress Disorder News and Research

RSS

As California’s behavioral health workforce buckles, help is years away

This spring, the Good News Rescue Mission, which runs the only emergency homeless shelter in Shasta County, received a game-changing $17.8 million state grant to build a 75-bed residential treatment facility in a region where thousands struggle with drug and alcohol addiction.

6 Aug 2025

Solastalgia identified as key concept linking climate change to mental health

'Solastalgia' might help explain the negative effects of climate change on mental health, suggests a review of the available research, published in the open access journal BMJ Mental Health.

5 Aug 2025

Scientists uncover new brain mechanism driving PTSD and potential counter-drug

Did you know that patients with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) often struggle to forget traumatic memories, even long after the danger has passed? This failure to extinguish fear memories has long puzzled scientists and posed a major hurdle for treatment, especially since current medications targeting serotonin receptors offer limited relief for only a subset of patients.

29 Jul 2025

Ibogaine treatment shows major breakthrough for veterans with brain injuries

Now, Stanford Medicine researchers have discovered that the plant-based psychoactive drug ibogaine, when combined with magnesium to protect the heart, safely and effectively reduces PTSD, anxiety and depression and improves functioning in veterans with TBI.

24 Jul 2025

Penn State team investigates the neural basis of nightmares and mental health

Dreams, and likely nightmares, are experienced universally across humans and animals, but neuroscientists still do not know why.

24 Jul 2025

New analysis reveals hidden economic burden of PTSD in the UK

The annual UK cost of the mental health disorder PTSD is likely to top £40 billion, but the figures are based on 2020-1 prevalence rates-the most recently available-and don't include many indirect costs, such as family support services, finds a cost analysis published in the open access journal BMJ Open.

22 Jul 2025

A million veterans gave DNA to aid health research. Scientists worry the data will be wasted.

One of the world's biggest genetic databases comprises DNA data donated over the years by more than a million retired military service members. It's part of a project run by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

16 Jul 2025

Survey highlights widespread emotional impact of cancer on patients and their families

A cancer diagnosis is a life-changing event for patients that can cause short- and long-term mental health concerns as they shift to living within a new timeline driven by weeks or months between medical follow-up appointments.

15 Jul 2025

Scientists discover pathway linking physical pain to emotional suffering

Pain isn't just a physical sensation-it also carries emotional weight. That distress, anguish, and anxiety can turn a fleeting injury into long-term suffering.

10 Jul 2025

Adding anxiety to Pennsylvania's medical cannabis program changes patient demographics

Within months of Pennsylvania's medical cannabis program adding anxiety as a qualifying condition, that diagnosis quickly rose to become the most common for cannabis certifications, according to a study by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and Johns Hopkins University. The study was published today in Annals of Internal Medicine.

8 Jul 2025

AI system offers new hope for diagnosing PTSD in children

Diagnosing post-traumatic stress disorder in children can be notoriously difficult. Many, especially those with limited communication skills or emotional awareness, struggle to explain what they're feeling.

30 Jun 2025

Exploring neural responses to mental exhaustion in healthy adults

In experiments with healthy volunteers undergoing functional MRI imaging, scientists have found increased activity in two areas of the brain that work together to react to, and possibly regulate, the brain when it's "feeling" tired and either quits or continues exerting mental effort.

27 Jun 2025

UQ researchers discover new lipid-based pathway essential for memory formation

A new lipid-based pathway essential for memory formation has been discovered by University of Queensland researchers – a breakthrough that could lead to treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

18 Jun 2025

New study stands to improve the rigor and reliability of psychedelic clinical trials

As psychedelics gain traction as potential treatments for mental health disorders, an international study led by researchers at McGill University, Imperial College London, and the University of Exeter stands to improve the rigor and reliability of clinical research.

3 Jun 2025

Researchers show cannabis dependence drives links to psychiatric disorders

Research uncovers genetic connections between cannabis addiction and psychiatric disorders, urging a reevaluation of cannabis legalization and treatment.

2 Jun 2025

Traditional Kava rituals provide alternative pathway to PTSD recovery

Researchers reviewed pilot and qualitative evidence suggesting that combining traditional Pacific kava with talanoa dialogue may help reduce PTSD symptoms among Pacific veterans and first responders. A clinical trial is planned to formally evaluate the safety, efficacy, and cultural adaptability of this innovative, culturally grounded therapy.

29 May 2025

Stress-induced sleep may hold the key to faster recovery

A new Neuron perspective reveals that stress can both disrupt and promote sleep, with specific brain circuits making stress-induced sleep a potential tool for recovery. This insight may lead to innovative approaches for building resilience and treating stress-related disorders.

25 May 2025

Palliative care for cardiovascular conditions may help relieve symptoms and improve quality of life

Palliative care may help relieve symptoms and improve quality of life for people with cardiovascular disease and ensure that treatment is aligned with the patient's personal beliefs and values throughout all stages of illness, whether they are hospitalized in a cardiac intensive care unit or receiving outpatient care, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement published today in the Association's flagship, peer-reviewed journal Circulation.

15 May 2025

Researchers uncover key role of peri-LC neurons in the brain arousal system

A small cluster of cells deep within our brains, called the locus coeruleus, affects how awake and attentive we are, how we respond to stress, how we cope with anxiety and fear, and how we create memories and learn.

14 May 2025

Talking therapy by GPs eases PTSD symptoms after critical illness

A brief spell of talking therapy with a general practitioner reduces symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for survivors of critical illness, finds a trial from Germany published by The BMJ today.

8 May 2025