IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD:
Scientists Say Shock Collar-Like Device Can Treat PTSD (Noor Al-Sibai, May 10, 2025, Futurism)
The underlying concept behind vagus nerve stimulation, or VNS, is intriguing. Scientists believe that stimulating the nerve can help one’s brain adapt and change on a neurological level. For years now, VNS has been used to treat everything from epilepsy and depression to sleep deprivation and tinnitus. Today, there are even handheld VNS devices on the market that allow people to mildly zap their brains at home.
This new experimental treatment, however, diverges from prior VNS applications because it not only involves hyper-targeted nerve stimulation, but also works in tandem with a traditional talk therapy method known as “prolonged exposure therapy” or PET, in which PTSD survivors confront their traumatic memories in hopes of getting past them.