The role of adult attachment, parental bonding, and spiritual love in the adjustment to military trauma.

In order to prevent the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and to effectively treat it in active-duty and veteran populations, it is important to identify factors that may protect individuals exposed to significant traumas during military service. This pilot investigation conceptualized significant relationships in terms of attachment theory and explored the salutogenic role of adult attachment, parental bonding, and divine love as protective factors in adjustment to and completed self-report attachment measures. Associations of attachment and perceptions of important relationships with PTSD status were investigated in a convenience sample of 102 veterans. The findings suggest that veterans with current PTSD had lower secure attachment and higher insecure attachment compared to those without PTSD. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that after controlling for demographics, secure attachment explained an additional 11.2% of the variance and made the greatest predictive contribution to PTSD in this investigation. Group differences (PTSD versus no PTSD) were examined on measures of important relationships, and no significant differences were found related to parental bonding or perceptions of love by God. Veterans with current PTSD had significantly higher insecure romantic attachment compared to the no PTSD group; however, romantic attachment did not make a significant predictive contribution to current PTSD severity. Implications of the results for the treatment of individuals exposed to combat trauma are discussed.

Pilot trial of memantine in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder.

This multiple case series was initially designed as a prospective, open-label, 12-week trial investigation evaluating memantine (Namenda) for the treatment of psychiatric and cognitive symptoms associated with PTSD. In a selected, small sample of individuals (n = 4) with combat PTSD, treatment with memantine produced consistent improvement on a delayed recall measure of memory, variable reduction of depressive symptoms, and variable reduction in hyperarousal symptoms. These data suggest potential positive treatment outcomes, both cognitively and psychiatrically, and provide rationale for future double-blind, placebo-controlled studies of memantine in PTSD.

No improvement of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms with guanfacine treatment.

OBJECTIVE: The authors report an 8-week, double-blind, randomized controlled trial of guanfacine versus placebo for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). METHOD: Veterans with chronic PTSD who were medication-free or receiving stable pharmacotherapy were randomly assigned to guanfacine (N=29) versus placebo (N=34). RESULTS: Guanfacine had no effect on PTSD symptoms, subjective sleep quality, or general mood disturbances. Guanfacine was associated with a number of side effects. CONCLUSIONS: These results do not support the use of alpha 2 agonists in veterans with chronic PTSD.

Are we ready for sexual reorientation therapy in the U.S. military? A response to David W. Lutz.

In his paper "The Catholic Church, the American Military, and Homosexual Reorientation Therapy," David W. Lutz ultimately concludes that it is "appropriate, and highly ethical" for the American military to offer reorientation therapy to help homosexuals overcome "the vice of sodomy." The major thrust of his paper, however, is to call for abandonment of the "Don't Ask/Don't Tell" policy currently in place in the military. Lutz's paper covers much ground, and this review begins by examining whether such a wide view is necessary for the ultimate conclusions. It goes on to ask whether Lutz has omitted to mention important considerations bearing on this issue, and whether Lutz's call for the introduction of reorientation therapy is a serious call or a symbolic response to homosexual activities. Lutz fails to address essential issues such as the actual experiences of other nations having homosexuals in the military, and issues regarding what constitutes "reorientation therapy," the latter leading to questions about how such a therapy would actually be implemented.