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With several hundred thousand veterans now believed to suffer from post traumatic stress disorder in the United States, the military is experimenting with new ways to help reduce the intensity of the symptoms. One avenue that the military is exploring is the use of meditation techniques to reduce symptoms of PTSD.

On the face of it, it seems like an insurmountable challenge to get hardened military veterans to practice meditation techniques. In fact, the normal methods of treatment for post traumatic stress disorder are drugs, behavioral therapy and other techniques. However, as California veterans disability benefits lawyers often find, many of these techniques simply don't work for a growing category of veterans.

In the kind of meditation techniques that are being studied by the military, a person focuses all his concentration on a single activity for a set time. The time can last between 15 and 20 minutes, and the activity can be as simple as focusing on the person's breathing.

According to the researchers, such mindful meditation can actually lower stress levels, and reduces the severity of the symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder. These techniques have been used with great effectiveness in other categories of the population, and the researchers believe that these techniques can also be used with similar success by service members for dealing with the stress of combat.

In fact, so effective are these techniques that the researchers believe that learning to meditate should be an essential part of the training of every military service member.

As part of the study, a group of Marine reservists were given training on meditation just before they went on combat duty in Iraq, while another support control group did not receive any training. The researchers found that the group of veterans that had the benefit of the meditation training showed much lower levels of stress and anxiety.

A husband-and-wife research team in South Carolina is offering a treatment for symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder that includes the use of an unusual drug. The researchers base their treatment on small quantities of the hallucinogenic drug, ecstasy.

The drug, whose scientific name is MDMA, is known as a party drug, and has often featured heavily in the tabloids because of its use by the Hollywood set. Back in the 80s and 90s, ecstasy was widely used by people who loved the fact that it induced feelings of euphoria. In 1985, the drug was placed on a list of prohibited substances. However, some labs are permitted to produce MDMA for research purposes.

The South Carolina team has published their research paper in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. The study was conducted by the research team in collaboration with the University of South Carolina and the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies. Most of the patients involved in the study were victims of rape. The treatment included the use of psychotherapy with a dose of ecstasy. California veterans benefits lawyers believe that this is the first time that research has focused on the use of recreational drugs, like ecstasy in the treatment of PTSD.

The researchers say that out of the 21 people who took their treatment and recovered from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, 15 people reported no return of the symptoms today. These people took the treatment in the 2000s.

The military was not involved in the research. However, it is likely that the military will be interested in the findings of the study because the Department of Defense is currently researching new therapies for post traumatic stress disorder, a condition which is widespread among veterans.

The incidence of PTSD is likely to increase over the next couple of years, as troops begin to return home from combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan, making it imperative that we continue investments in new PTSD therapies.

Researchers have found that veterans, who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, have a much smaller volume in an area of the brain that is responsible for emotions like fear and anxiety.

According to the researchers at the Duke University and the Durham VA Medical Center, this suggests that a significantly smaller volume in the amygdala, which is a small area in the brain that is responsible for regulating emotions, is linked to symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder.

California veterans benefits lawyers are aware of several studies conducted in animals that have found that the amygdala plays a significant role in regulating fear, stress and anxiety responses. However, the extent of the influence of this area on human emotions had not been confirmed. The researchers looked at the structural damage to the amygdala in persons who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, because they wanted to understand the effect of this region of the brain, which is responsible for processing of fear and other responses.

The research included about 200 combat veterans who had served in Afghanistan and Iraq. About half of the veterans suffered from post traumatic stress disorder, and the other 50% had been injured during combat, but had not developed any symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder.

The researchers then scanned and compare the volumes of the amygdala in these veterans. They found that post traumatic stress disorder was linked to a significantly smaller volume in the left and right amygdala. The research also confirmed the association between post traumatic stress disorder and a smaller left hippocampus.

However, the research doesn't seem to confirm whether the smaller size of the amygdala is due to physical trauma.

The Pentagon is investing more than $100 million in new efforts to fight both traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder. The announcement of the new initiatives was made to coincide with the 11th anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks, which triggered off the 2 wars that have resulted in thousands of veterans suffering post-traumatic stress disorder and brain injury.

California veterans benefits lawyers expect cases of post traumatic stress disorder to explode over the next few months, as soldiers return from combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan. The US military has been very concerned about the high incidence of both traumatic brain injury as well as life-altering post-traumatic stress disorder, which has been blamed for the high incidence of suicides among returning veterans. The military has been investing in brain injury research, but it is clear that more needs to be done to understand how best we can help these veterans who are returning home in such a crippled state.

The Pentagon’s 2 new initiatives are the Consortium to Alleviate PTSD and the Chronic Effects of Neurotrauma Consortium. These 2 consortiums will be managed by the Department Of Veterans Affairs and the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs on behalf of the Defense Department.

The Consortium to Alleviate PTSD will study the potential indicators of the condition, possible strategies to prevent PTSD, interventions and treatments. The Chronic Effects of Neurotrauma Consortium will try to understand more about the causes of brain injury, the conditions that are associated with a worsening of brain trauma, as well as other related issues.

What makes both traumatic brain injury and post traumatic stress disorder especially challenging to beat is that very often, both of these conditions are found in the same person. A person who suffers a brain injury is at a much higher risk of suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.

Veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder are at a much higher risk of suicide than the general population. In fact, California veterans benefits lawyers have found that suicides are the number one killer among veterans. Concerned at the growing number of suicides in the United States, especially those involving veterans, the federal administration has announced the launch of a new strategy that will tap into technologies, like social media and social networking to reduce the risks of suicide.

The new strategy was announced by US Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, who says that it is time we finally understood that the entire community can prevent a suicide. The strategy will include the use of social media and social networking, sites like Facebook, mobile apps as well as other technologies to help drive a community-based effort that will help prevent suicides.

As part of the strategy, the plan is promoting a Facebook Inc. service. The service allows users to report any suicidal comments that they see from people online. If such a person has been identified, then the website will send that person an e-mail, urging him to talk to a counselor confidentially online, or to contact a suicide prevention hotline. Facebook is a big part of this new strategy, and for millions of Americans as well as veterans, it has become a daily journal. There are a number of cases where people posted their feelings of depression and anxiety on Facebook, just before they committed suicide.

According to Facebook's global vice president for public policy, the website will use its unique resources to help people who are depressed.

Besides Facebook, the new strategy will also include the use of mobile apps, which are able to help persons who are suffering from suicidal thoughts, to connect with counseling services that can help them.

Arizona is one of the few states in the country that has a medical marijuana policy that allows the distribution and sale of medical marijuana for treatment of certain disorders. Veterans in that state are now demanding that post traumatic stress disorder also be included as a qualifying condition in the program. Currently, Arizona's medical marijuana program only allows the sale of marijuana to treat certain conditions, like cancer and chronic pain.

The US Department of Veterans Affairs allows the use of medical marijuana by patients in the treatment of medical conditions when they're living in states that have such policies in place. However, the Department Of Veterans Affairs does not actually recommend the use of marijuana for treatment. That is because the sale of marijuana -medical or otherwise - is banned under federal law.

Currently, there are 17 states that have medical marijuana programs in place, but there is no information about how many veterans are using these programs. However, many program advocates believe that more and more veterans are turning to medical marijuana programs to treat PTSD symptoms that they return with from combat.

California veteran benefits lawyers believe that veterans are using medical marijuana to treat symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder as well as traumatic brain injury. Many veterans who return from combat with severe debilitating injuries like amputation may suffer from chronic physical pain, and may use medical marijuana to help treat the pain.

As far as medical marijuana is concerned, the federal administration has been sending out frustratingly mixed signals. In states, that do have medical marijuana policies in place, the federal administration has been cracking down on dispensaries, stating that these activities are illegal since pot is banned under federal law. That means a severe hardship for patients who depend on medical marijuana to treat their symptoms.

The incidence of post traumatic stress disorder among veterans is likely to reach epidemic proportions as the number of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan increase. The federal administration is under increasing pressure to come up with new techniques to treat this debilitating psychological illness. A team of researchers is experimenting with the use of virtual reality simulations to treat symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder.

Researchers at the University Of California collaborated with a counseling center in Pasadena to use virtual reality simulations to help veterans with post traumatic stress disorder cope and prevent their symptoms. California veterans benefits lawyers find that this approach is much different from techniques used in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder in the past. The use of virtual reality doesn’t only help veterans cope with the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, but also helps prevent the symptoms altogether.

A person who is using this virtual reality program can control the simulation via a computer, and can program a barrage of visual, audio and even olfactory simulations that are designed to mimic the experience of a military convoy making its way through terrorist-ridden terrain in Iraq and Afghanistan. The user has to wear wraparound goggles and use a joystick, to control his point of view and his reactions. He is required to negotiate the hazards that pop up as he is traveling with his military convoy. The virtual reality program is as lifelike as possible, exposing the veteran to sights, smells and sounds that are as similar to his combat environment as possible.

The study found that veterans, who know clearly that this is a simulation and not reality, suffered very extreme physical reactions when they were placed through the program.

There is a new generation of veterans that is being welcomed in the United States, as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wind down, and thousands of soldiers return home. However, there are stark differences between this generation of vets and the generation that returned from Vietnam.

Many troops are now female. Also, many veterans are members of the Reserves and National Guard. One of the most significant differences that California veterans benefits lawyers have found between these vets and in the past, is the injuries that these veterans have suffered. Many veterans now return with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, and suffer severe and debilitating injuries like genital injuries, which were not seen in past wars.

There has been great progress made in helping military personnel survive debilitating injuries during combat. That is part of the reason why fatality rates in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been lower than in the past. However, the downside to this is that survivors are often left with catastrophic injuries.

For instance, the use of IED devices has meant that many veterans have suffered injuries to their genitals. These are serious injuries that in the past would have resulted in death from blood loss, but in a modern war, many veterans have survived these injuries. According to the Veterans Administration, among the recent veterans that it's treated, more than 1,600 have suffered limb amputations.

There are vast numbers of vets currently seeking benefits for service-related disabilities. It is estimated that approximately 50% of the veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will be filing veteran’s benefit claims. In fact, claims are being filed at a speedy rate, and the government is finding it hard to process claims quickly, leading to backlogs.

Struggling to cope with an increasing number of veterans returning from combat with severe symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, the US military is experimenting with a number of alternate techniques to treat the disorder. One of the most successful of such techniques has been the use of service dogs.

An increasing number of veterans with severe symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder are being paired off with service dogs that are specifically trained for this purpose. Experts believe that there are numerous benefits from using dogs as a part of therapy for veterans who have seen and experienced so much in combat. Several organizations are now providing dogs for veterans, at little or no cost. A number of businesses that train dogs for use by the blind have diversified into training dogs for use by veterans.

Even Congress has ordered the Department Of Veterans Affairs to conduct a study into the effectiveness of using such service dogs as therapy for persons with post traumatic stress disorder. Some lawmakers are even considering a proposal that would finance the training of service dogs. Such training can be expensive, with a price tag of $15,000 per dog.

However, the benefits of dogs in helping treat PTSD have very little basis in science. There are few scientific studies that show that a service dog relieves symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder. Even California veteran’s benefits lawyers and people, who propagate the use of service dogs to help veterans with PTSD, admit that the dogs can't eliminate symptoms like anxiety and depression.

However, there seems to be some evidence that these dogs help veterans cope with flashbacks, nightmares and panic attacks. No one expects a service dog to dramatically relieve the symptoms of PTSD, but these animals can help veterans cope with their symptoms.

A soldier, who has received a diagnosis of post traumatic stress disorder, can expect months of trauma and anxiety, as he struggles to cope with the effects of combat-related stress. However, according to a study, not all goes downhill after a diagnosis of post traumatic stress disorder. In fact, some veterans seemed to show signs of developing positive life skills and coping skills, after an injury leading to post traumatic stress disorder.

The researchers who decided to probe the development of life skills after post traumatic stress disorder were intrigued by the idea that people learn from hardships. The results of the study are not really surprising to California veterans’ benefits lawyers. Throughout history, the idea that people learn from difficulties, make adjustments, and choose to focus on the brighter side of things, has been a common part of the human experience. However, the researchers wanted to actively investigate this phenomenon, and see how prevalent such growth is in soldiers who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder.

The researchers interviewed a number of survivors who had suffered severe injuries, and older persons who had lost spouses. Both people who had suffered injuries and persons who had lost spouses had more or less the same reactions to their losses. They wished very strongly that the spouse had not died or that they had not suffered the injury, but they also felt very strongly that the traumatic experience did change their life in a positive manner.

The researchers found several areas in which persons reported positive changes after an injury or losing a spouse. For instance, the persons reported experiencing a greater appreciation for life, experiencing more personal strength and better relationships and also greater levels of spiritual satisfaction. These persons were able to find the strength to look for new possibilities for themselves.