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How will I know the treatment has been successful?

Dr. Edward MacPhee, Psychiatrist, answers common questions about PTSD.

Transcript

I think that a patient is the one who defines

what success ends up being.

When they feel that they've gotten everything

that they need from treatment, and that's where

medications don't necessarily achieve everything.

Certainly can bring the symptoms down,

can improve a person's quality of life and functionality,

but even after you do that, that still doesn't mean

the person is able to live

the life that they want to live.

And that's where I think it's very important

for us to recognize the limitations of medications,

and also to be using therapy where it's appropriate.

And it may be types of therapy or other interventions

that focus on quality of life, positive psychology,

such as developing a sense of meaning or a sense of purpose.

Those may be the sort of things that patients

are actually looking for, and we have not

completed treatment until they reach that point.

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