Since the 2000s, propranolol, a heart medication, has been used to treat post-traumatic stress during psychotherapy. According to a Canadian doctor, it could reduce the emotional impact of a traumatic breakup.
A miracle pill to mend broken hearts: the idea may seem crazy but it is very real. Initially used to treat heart problems, propranolol has been prescribed since the 2000s to set up psychotherapies for post-traumatic stress (PTS).
According to Canadian researcher Alain Brunet, propranolol would also be able to simplify psychotherapy and relieve the trauma associated with a breakup.
A beta-blocker capable of dulling the pain of a memory
Propranolol is a so-called “beta-blocker” drug, it is able to reduce heart rate and blood pressure. This treatment is traditionally used to treat cardiac pathologies, as well as migraines. In the 2000s, researchers realized that this drug had an interest in the treatment of post-traumatic stress. It was used in particular for the psychotherapies put in place after the Paris attacks in 2015.
The Canadian doctor Alain Brunet will devote a large part of his research. He created a method based on the use of this beta-blocker combined with therapy carried out by a psychiatrist or psychologist. During a session, the patient takes the medicine then goes to write or recount his traumatic memory, then an hour later, he is immersed in this memory again.
In the meantime, the drug has had time to act, the patient is less stressed, and the memory can be controlled: it goes from short-term memory to long-term memory. As the sessions progress, the associated pain decreases. This technique was the subject of a clinical trial after the attacks of November 13 in the Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris.
Doctors trained in France
Alain Brunet now wishes to apply this technique to love breakups which remain very painful. In his interview at Parisianhe explains: “the heartbreak, it seems light. And for good reason, it does not present a vital threat. But if some people react well, for others, the ground gives way under their feet. It can then lead to an adjustment disorder, in the same way as post-traumatic stress.
According to the doctor, the patients concerned would be those who feel frantic urges to cry, nausea or even distress. As in the case of post-traumatic syndrome, the drug should be used in the context of psychiatric or psychological monitoring. According to The ParisianFrench doctors have been trained in the prescription of this drug since January.
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