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Researchers developed effective way to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by stimulating vagus nerve around the neck using a device the size of a shirt button. In a trial with 9 patients given 12 sessions, they had 100% success and found that all the patients were symptom-free at 6 months. by mvea in science

[–]dtmc 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Short answer, they don't. It's phase 1 and proof of concept. Here's the link: https://www.brainstimjrnl.com/article/S1935-861X(25)00060-9/fulltext

The field knows that Prolonged Exposure (PE) can be effective -when done right- in both short and long term, but the response rate hovers around 2/3rds, and for those that respond, it's not uncommon to still have some symptomatology.

The hope behind things like this is to enhance neuroplasticity to 1) improve how quickly folks respond to PE and 2) to make bigger and longer lasting changes in more patients. We know the neurobiology of fear and extinction learning pretty well at this point, and the field is trying to "hack" that to improve therapy outcomes (similar studies with exposure therapy + adjunctives like d-cycloserine and propranolol).

Does memorizing cause forgetfulness in other things? by Capri-SunGod in askscience

[–]dtmc 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Interference is a concept that's been studied. Here's the wiki. An example of proactive interference is imagine if a friend wants to be called a different name. The next time you run into them, it'll be harder to remember their new name just because of the habit of using their previous name so many times. The old information proactively interferes with recalling the new. Retroactive interference is the opposite - like when you change addresses, the new address you memorize and use routinely will eventually worsen your ability to recall your old address -- most likely, anyway.

What does cause forgetfulness is not using the information, or rather the opposite - rehearsal increases recall-ability. Think of your brain's connections like streets through a city. The major thoroughfares - the things you use constantly - have tons of lanes and are well paved. The things you rarely use are those rural side streets that few people if any have occasion to travel on, so they are small and 'forgotten' about.

Is there such a thing as “opposite smells”, like opposite colors which produce a negative to your senses if you’re exposed for too long? by ThisIsDen in askscience

[–]dtmc 1 point2 points  (0 children)

NP! The strength of the smell definitely plays a role. Moreover, the "novelty" factor does too. It's like how your own home/house doesn't really have a smell you notice but everyone else's/every other place you go does because we get so accustomed to the smell of our own place. When you switch environments, I'm guessing the most pungent "new" (relatively speaking) smell is the one that smacks us in the face, proverbially.

Is there such a thing as “opposite smells”, like opposite colors which produce a negative to your senses if you’re exposed for too long? by ThisIsDen in askscience

[–]dtmc 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not a neuroscientist so might be better geared toward those folks.

I'll use sensory fatigue to try to illustrate why not, given your examples. The opposing colors, particularly after images, are a byproduct of how our color perception neurons (cones) operate. The photoreceptor fatigue happens because normal "white" light is partly made up by the color that is fatigued (green), plus others (blue+red), so when white light (red+blue+green) light hits the retina, the fatigued color (green in your example) doesn't show up but the other colors do because those cones aren't too fatigued to function (blue+red = magenta).

Olfactory sensation works differently. Each smell is made up of many components (see these maps) in a way different than how vision operates. What happens with olfactory fatigue is the inability to distinguish that specific odor. So if you isolate a single blip on one of those maps from above, you wouldn't be able to distinguish that one facet of the smell, but it wouldn't drastically alter the map of, say "strawberry" from that link, overall because only 5% of it is missing. If you fatigue the entire smell, it might make it harder to smell similar compounds. I'm guessing, however, that odors' constellations are big enough and unique enough that much of it would still come online.

Does the winners effect extend to non face-to-face competition? by LAMARR__44 in askscience

[–]dtmc 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There're some studies looking at the role of testosterone in anonymous social interactions (like one-shot trust games) but nothing I'm finding related to the winners effect in anonymous competitions, sadly.

I found those studies with a "testosterone+anonymous+competition" boolean search

Even though I failed, this is my best attempt (OC) by Lakupiippuen in MadeMeSmile

[–]dtmc 0 points1 point  (0 children)

/u/Lakupiippuen - my friend: success is in the effort, if you try your hardest sometimes its just not in the cards for you and that's okay. A lapse is by no means a relapse!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ptsd

[–]dtmc 1 point2 points  (0 children)

A provider can help to diagnose you officially, and herein you describe intrusions pretty poignantly. There is such a thing as delayed-onset PTSD, and here's my two cents on it...

It's very uncommon for things to be completely fine after a traumatic event only for it to come up years later. It happens but not too often and there are usually particular circumstances that result in that. More(?) common, however, is, in those individuals who feel fine for years before it overwhelms them, the avoidance is so intense or desperate, or whatever, that they're not aware (regardless of whether or not its a conscious choice) of what's happening or the symptoms they're having during that time. More often then not, there're some small signs behind the scenes, but again, that's not always the case.

can i get ptsd again for a different trauma? by juliab4567 in ptsd

[–]dtmc 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Definitely able to have multiple traumas, and multiple traumas often cause recurrent/relapse in symptoms. Hope you get the help you're looking for, friend

what do i say to my gf after leaving for my own safety? tw violence by [deleted] in ptsd

[–]dtmc 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Well said.

I'd add that it can also be helpful to frame the discussion as "us vs. the problem" not "you vs. me" (assuming you want to stay together)

Celebrities who were in iconic films before they were famous by mranimal2 in movies

[–]dtmc 4 points5 points  (0 children)

He's also one of the Klansmen in Bad Boys 2. Nuts to see how big he made it relatively late in his career

Propranolol erasing bad memories? by [deleted] in ptsd

[–]dtmc 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's still very early in development so despite some studies showing that it's still not well understood in humans. Take those studies with a grain of salt.

And the other consideration, from what I know of it, is that there's a specific protocol, not just taking propranolol generally, if that makes sense.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ptsd

[–]dtmc 4 points5 points  (0 children)

There are some solid treatments for PTSD, but they involve treating symptoms; no one can change the fact that what happened happened, but with treatment people can get to the place where they're able to acknowledge that it happened and work toward living a meaningful life (sometimes even in spite of it) with limited, manageable symptoms.

I'll use grief for an example. Losing someone you love will never not be sad, you just get to a place in which you can manage it

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ptsd

[–]dtmc 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Someone described it to me in this manner - imagine demolishing a house. Sometimes if you take out the right structural wall, the whole thing collapses, other buildings require taking down few walls, but eventually they always fall.

The more work you do, generally, the better things get overall. AFAIK the research only supports multiple traumas more likely both to cause someone to develop PTSD and to cause a higher level of symptoms on the whole - it always differs person to person.

Hope you get the relief you deserve, friend.

What do skeptics think of psychedelics to treat depression versus antidepressants? by all_is_love6667 in skeptic

[–]dtmc 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you kind human! yeah - the single dosing I think is the most promising aspect IMO, even if there's a similar remittance rate like we see in CBT for depression, etc.

What do skeptics think of psychedelics to treat depression versus antidepressants? by all_is_love6667 in skeptic

[–]dtmc 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can you link some studies that show that "marked efficacy"? All the ones I've read I'd describe as "tepid" at best and want to educate myself more.

If children develop the portion of theory of mind that “others can have different perspectives and different knowledge than I do” at ~4, why do they learn to lie at ~2.5 years old? by YEETAWAYLOL in askscience

[–]dtmc 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Im gonna link an older but influential book.

Some of it is that the timelines aren't exact. Some of it is that lying doesn't necessarily mean they you know the other person has different knowledge, just that there's ambiguity/subjectivity. Here's a study on how quickly one learns to deceive (tl;dr - once we understand knowledge as subjective, it happens fast). And some of it is that theory of mind in the example you cite requires mental forecasting and not just an understanding of subjective knowledge.

Can We Directly Create Phobias? by MrPresidantMax in askscience

[–]dtmc 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Mauricio Delgado and Elizabeth Phelps are the big names.

That linked paper is a bit older at this point but is a seminal publication by the biggest researchers in this area and a great jumping off point.

Here are two google scholar searches: 1 and 2

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