Download Chart: Using Symptoms and Neurobiology in
Considering Treatment Practices
Many veterans will have symptoms that appear on more than one line of this chart, and so they might from more than one therapeutic intervention.
Please note: The final column, “A Few Corresponding Practices,” includes both evidence-based and promising practices that are designed to address the symptom clusters and challenges listed to their left. The inclusion of a practice in this column does not constitute a recommendation that this practice be used, in general, or in a specific case. That would be far beyond the scope of these pages. By the same token, the omission of a practice from this column is not in any way meant to imply that this practice is not appropriate or effective.
You will notice that the chart does not mention medical interventions. Although medical interventions are sometimes necessary for stabilization, recommending specific medications would also be beyond the scope of this site. The general advice is to coordinate with prescribing doctors and help monitor medication side effects and effectiveness.
The chart also does not mention the many self-help and self-care measures that are important for veterans, as they are for all of us. Some of those measures are mentioned on the final section of the Clinical Pages, Promoting Veterans’ Recovery and Self-Care.
When you look at this chart, please remember that it is centered on the neurobiology of trauma—the brain, the stress systems, and the other parts of the body that carry the stress—and ways of addressing that central driving force. Although the chart does not address any of the other, equally important aspects of the human being—the mind, the heart, the spirit—it is definitely not meant to diminish the importance of these aspects. The aim is to get the body in line so the mind, heart, and spirit will have a more hospitable climate to live in, and a better chance to make their needs and wishes known.
Next: Additional Considerations in
Treatment Planning
The material on all of the Clinical Pages is taken directly from the draft version of Finding Balance After the War Zone: Considerations in the Treatment of Post-Deployment Stress Effects, a manual under development for the Great Lakes Addiction Technology Transfer Center and Human Priorities. This draft is copyright © 2008, Pamela Woll. Reprint permission is universally granted, but attribution is requested.
Click here for References and Other Resources.
Click here to link to a PDF file of the current version of the clinician’s manual draft.
Click here to link to a PDF file of the accompanying booklet for veterans.
