Here's an interesting article from Associated Content about a new treatment for PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). But the term "treatment" is probably a misnomer, because what this research is trying to do is "block" the long term effects of PTSD by administering the beta-blocker propranolol up to six hours after a traumatic event is experienced. The result? Since the beta-blocker keeps stress hormones like adrenaline, cortisol, and norepinephrine from making a huge imprint in the stress centers of the brain, there is actually less "trauma" for the subject to remember. Instead of PTSD treatment, perhaps this should be called "chemical traumatic avoidance".
This research admittedly has ethical issues, such as creating a soldier with no emotional backlash for all the horrible things he or she might do or see, unintentionally turning people into sociopathic killing machines. An alternate therapy revolves around "reconsolidation," or treating people with blockers as they "relive" a traumatic memory, thus disabling the brain's ability to reconsolidate or re-remember the event in long-term-memory once it has been recalled. This form of after-the-fact memory wiping has already been tested to some degree of success. Read the short article below to get an overview of these radical new memory tweaking procedures.
