PTSD stands for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and regardless of what you heard on the news, it doesn’t mean that everyone with PTSD has just returned from war. Though many veterans suffer from PTSD it can be caused by any traumatic event experienced by any individual. Operation RSF works with both veterans and civilians who desire to control their symptoms of PTSD through physical activity and exercise.

PTSD can be diagnosed by a licensed clinical psychologist or psychiatrist who bases their diagnosis on the DSM-V definition of PTSD. If you are experiencing some of the symptoms below after experiencing a traumatic event, please reach out to a psychologist or psychiatrist to open up lines of communication.

​The current definition, according to the DSM-V, for what constitutes PTSD includes:

• Re-experiencing the traumatic event:

  • Having flashbacks​

  • Nightmares

  • Intense and prolonged psychological distress

• Avoidance​

  • Due to experiencing distressing memories, thoughts, feelings, and reminders of the traumatic event.

• Negative Thoughts & Mood​

  • Persistent and distorted sense of blame of self or others​

  • Estrangement from others

  • Diminished interest in activities

  • Inability to remember key aspects of the event

• Arousal issues​

  • Aggressive, reckless, self-destructive behavior.​

  • Sleep disturbance.

  • Hyper-vigilance

There are a number of different treatment options that range from services from professionals to pharmaceuticals. If you are currently involved in a therapy that is helping you then we recommend using physical activity and exercise as a supplement, but there are also a number of reasons to try using physical activity and exercise as a treatment method. Budde & Wegner (2018) list five reasons to look at exercise for mental health.

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1. The benefits of physical activity on mental health is very well researched by a number of peer-reviewed studies.
2. Physical activity is cost-effective. Using bodyweight training or going for runs or hikes, you can get moving with very little investment beyond shoes. Even gym memberships, when compared to the cost of psychotherapies or pharmaceutical approaches can be considered cost-effective.
3. When compared to pharmaceutical approaches, physical activity is considered to have minimal aversive side-effects.
4. Physical activity has the potential to improve physical health and overall well-being while also positively impacting your mental health.
5. Physical activity and exercise can be indefinitely sustained while psychotherapies and even pharmaceutical approaches often have an end-point. Life long physical activity can also benefit independence later in life.
6. Many other therapeutic approaches can be expensive or in short supply in your direct area.
7. Being physically active is FUN!

Additional approaches that have showed positive benefits include mind-body approaches such as diaphragmatic breathing/resonant breathing, Tai-Chi, and Yoga, adventure training which offers more social, self-acceptance, and sense of achievement benefits, and of course the cognitive therapeutic methods, as mentioned earlier, which can help challenge the thoughts and perceptions which are influencing behaviors. Sport psychology has also shown benefits by increasing intrinsic motivation through goal-setting, self-talk, routine building, and reframing negative thoughts and feelings resulting in a greater sense of control.​

There have been some studies that utilized 4-6 week follow-ups after ceasing the physical activity intervention that has found the benefits of the symptoms can begin to decrease and a return to the level pre-intervention. This is why we hope the 4-Week Challenge is only a stepping stone for a lifelong commitment towards physical and mental health through physical activity.