![]() ![]() And we need to develop preventative interventions that can be delivered soon after trauma to prevent the buildup of symptoms." Think of such an intervention as a kind of "cognitive vaccine." "More research is definitely needed to develop this approach," says Emily Holmes, a psychology professor at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and lead author of the study. Per the criteria in the DSM-5 - psychiatry's go-to diagnostic reference - a diagnosis of PTSD cannot be made until one month after the inciting incident if Tetris proves effective this far out, doctors and therapists treating the condition might have an effective and easy-to-prescribe option to turn to. Traumatic memories and all-to-real flashbacks are central to anxiety conditions like acute stress disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. The study was small, but the authors feel the results justify a larger follow-up trial to test the long-term effects of Tetris therapy, for which they are now seeking funding. What's more, their bad memories diminished more quickly than in controls. The gamers were found to have 62 percent fewer intrusive memories in the first week after their accident than the control group. ![]() (If it helps, they were paid.) They were then randomized to either play Tetris for 20 minutes on a handheld Nintendo DS XL system or to instead fill out an activity log of what they had experienced since arriving at the hospital. While waiting to be seen, patients were first asked to recall their trauma and recount the worst moments that sprang to mind. The new research looked at 71 patients who had presented to the John Radcliffe Hospital emergency room in Oxford, England, within six hours of being in a car accident. and Sweden published a study reporting that playing just 20 minutes of Tetris - in research parlance, a "Tetris-based intervention" - following an automobile accident can help prevent the formation of the painful, intrusive memories that can follow trauma. Last week a group of researchers from the U.K. But the science now shows that activities as simple as playing distracting video games or focusing on eye movements can help patients cope with a tragic experience. And many of them were, in all likelihood, bunk. Clinicians and philosophers have tried countless ways of treating trauma and anxiety through the years - of finding, as Roman stoic philosopher Seneca called it, tranquillitas, or peace of mind. I'm referring to the idea that some combination of facing negative memories, but also being distracted from them, might help alleviate the vivid psychological scars of trauma. But it turns out the particular brand of disconnection provided by Tetris may reflect a mental state long sought by healers to treat patients who have lived through a trauma. ![]()
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