The Goddess
01-15-2009, 07:28 AM
Playing video games after traumatic events may reduce flashbacks that plague sufferers of post-traumatic stress disorder.
The preliminary findings could lead to new treatments to prevent or cut flashbacks that are common to the condition.
Oxford University researchers showed a film to 40 healthy volunteers that included traumatic images of injury from several sources, including advertisements on the dangers of drunk driving.
They then played a game of Tetris, which the team believed may interfere with the way sensory memories are formed in the period following trauma.
Psychologist Emily Holmes says, "This is only a first step in showing that this might be a viable approach to preventing post traumatic stress disorder. This was a pure science experiment about how the mind works from which we can try to understand the bigger picture."
The preliminary findings could lead to new treatments to prevent or cut flashbacks that are common to the condition.
Oxford University researchers showed a film to 40 healthy volunteers that included traumatic images of injury from several sources, including advertisements on the dangers of drunk driving.
They then played a game of Tetris, which the team believed may interfere with the way sensory memories are formed in the period following trauma.
Psychologist Emily Holmes says, "This is only a first step in showing that this might be a viable approach to preventing post traumatic stress disorder. This was a pure science experiment about how the mind works from which we can try to understand the bigger picture."