[Peace-discuss] got to keep the loonies on the path

[E. Wayne Johnson]

Medscape News Today has this article about military suicide.
Not one mention of the need to stop the war. Just lock up
the guns and dissociate 'em out through the K-hole with a little 
ketamine and
they'll be ok...

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/771603?src=mpnews&spon=17 
<http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/771603?src=mpnews&spon=17>

*

Military Suicide: US Takes Aim at Its 'Toughest Enemy'

Deborah Brauser

September 26, 2012 — With suicide rates by military personnel reaching 
all-time highs this summer and rates of psychiatric illnesses in this 
population — including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and severe 
depression — on the rise, clinicians, members of the US Congress, and 
even the President are taking action.

In August, the US Army confirmed that 26 active-duty soldiers and 12 
reserve soldiers died by suicide in July, which is the highest number 
ever recorded in 1 month in this population. From January through July 
of this year, a total of 116 active-duty soldiers and 71 reservists are 
believed to have killed themselves, compared with 165 and 118, 
respectively, in all of 2011.
In response, President Obama signed an executive order on August 31 
directing the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to hire 1600 new 
mental health professionals and 800 peer-support counselors so that 
anyone in crisis can see someone within 24 hours. He is also setting up 
a task force to develop strategies for improving diagnosis and treatment 
of PTSD and traumatic brain injury (TBI).
....

In a presentation at the "Brain at War" conference in San Francisco this 
summer, Aoife O'Donovan, PhD, from the University of California–San 
Francisco and the Northern California Institute for Research and 
Education, presented preliminary study findings showing that women with 
PTSD may also experience faster aging at the cellular level and 
increased inflammation than men with PTSD.

Activation of immune system cells was greater in the 10 female 
participants with PTSD than in the 8 without PTSD. In addition, none of 
the men with PTSD showed immune activation differences compared with the 
men without PTSD.

A cell-signalling pathway thought to help control inflammation was 
"ramped up" in men with PTSD but "dampened down" in the women with PTSD, 
"leading us to question if there are specific mechanisms by which men 
but not women might be more protected from inflammation," said Dr. 
O'Donovan in a release.

*

However, he added that although these options may help some veterans, "a 
lot of others" are not being helped.

"So in the treatment realm, the cognitive-behavioral therapies, 
especially prolonged exposure and cognitive processing therapy, are 
being touted as the best evidence-based treatments. But many of the vets 
don't go or don't buy into these processes and stop going," he said.

"So we're looking for other therapies that may work: eye movement 
desensitization, hypnosis, and other talking therapies. And they're also 
looking for other medications, such as D-cycloserine, which is an old 
tuberculosis drug that may work on the glutamate system, and ketamine," 
said Dr. Croft.

Complementary and alternative treatments currently being explored to 
treat PTSD and TBI by some civilian and service clinicians include yoga, 
meditation, massage, acupuncture, and even service dogs.