FLICKR/THE NATIONAL GUARD
WARRIOR
POSES
and meditation, can help patients regain their inner balance,
calming that part of the brain
that has become hyper-aroused
under severe stress.
Trauma or prolonged stress can
cause a malfunction of the parasympathetic nervous system, researchers say. That’s the part of
the brain that enables the body to
relax, easing pain and even helping unblock digestive systems
— often a problem for wounded
troops who get high doses of medication and not enough exercise.
In war zones, researchers have
found, this parasympathetic
nervous system often becomes
“frozen” as the body gears up for
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01.13.13
danger by injecting adrenaline
into the bloodstream, causing
rapid breathing and pulse and
hyper-vigilance — the “fight or
flight” response.
That’s good and necessary selfpreservation in times of peril
that helps keep troops alert and
alive. Back home, however, that
hyper-vigilance is out of place
and can cause insomnia, anxiety
and outbursts of anger. Returning
warriors with PTSD become dependent on drugs or alcohol “because they have no other way to
calm themselves down,” said Dr.
Bessel van der Kolk, a clinician
and researcher who has studied
PTSD since the 1970s.
Spc. David
Kocian
teaches a
yoga class at
Camp Adder,
Iraq.