Can playing Tetris help prevent PTSD?

Conclusion Involvement in a traumatic event such as a traffic accident can have long-lasting effects on mental health. Some people have months or years of distressing, intrusive flash-backs, feelings of guilt or helplessness, anxiety and depression. At present, there are no treatments that can be given straight away to prevent such long-term effects. The lack of long-term effects in the study results mean we need to be cautious about claims that playing Tetris could "prevent" PTSD. Limitations of the study – such as an untested control intervention, and the relatively small number of participants – mean this is an experimental study to establish a theory, not proof that the treatment works. Intrusive memories are not the only symptom of PTSD but are thought to be an important part of it. We don't know whether interfering with the laying down of these intense, distressing visual images can prevent PTSD. However, a simple treatment to reduce the recurrence of these memories – even in the short term – might reduce people's suffering in the immediate aftermath of a trauma. The same researchers published a paper looking at use of Tetris after trauma, as we reported back in 2009, but in that case they relied on "inducing" trauma by asking people to watch films of traumatic events. This is the first time the intervention has been tested in people who have actually experienced real life trauma. However, there are many different types and severities of tr...
Source: NHS News Feed - Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Mental health Source Type: news