Erasing Memories: Next Treatment for PTSD and Other Trauma-Related Disorders?
Neuroscientists are exploring ways to erase bad memories in patients who have experienced traumatic events. This possibility raises ethical concerns: Is it ethical to erase a memory or flashback and the feelings associated with that moment to alleviate suffering, or should clinicians focus on therapies such as CBT and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) to help patients cope with a trauma?
Neuroscientists are exploring ways to erase bad memories in patients who have experienced traumatic events. But, is it ethical to erase a memory or flashback and the feelings associated with that moment to alleviate suffering, or should clinicians focus on therapies such as CBT and EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) to help patients cope with a trauma?
Dr Anders Sandberg, neuroscientist and philosopher at the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University, and Dr Emily Holmes, senior research fellow and clinical psychologist at Oxford University, debate the issue in a podcast for the BBC.
