When words fail

Some advocated a controversial form of therapy called eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR), which involves asking the patient to focus on the therapist's moving finger as they recall the unpleasant memories. The condition became widely known during the first world war, when it was called shell shock, but it was not until 1980 that the American Psychiatric Association added PTSD to its list of recognised mental disorders. Beyond battlefield horrors, other potential triggers are now thought to include incidents such as rape or natural disasters - even events as commonplace as a mugging or difficult childbirth.

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Laura Spinney

Spinney, L. (2007, February). When words fail. New Scientist, 193(2589), 40-43