Cage fighting for Combat PTSD?

We tell them to take care of their mind, body and spirit so they can heal but I am not sure about this one. Yoga is advised because it teaches the body to calm down naturally. Tai Chi works the same way and so a long list of other things but Cage Fighting? How would that work?

Kyle Dubay said it helps him get rid of "negative energy" but he does it fighting. Will this work for some? Dubay thinks it does. Will it work for everyone? No, nothing works for everyone.

If they take care of the "whole" veteran that works. The mind therapy usually requires talking to a mental health professional and often medication. The spirit requires they talk to someone about where this wound attacked and lives, the soul. The body requires they relearn how to calm down again.

So how does fighting do that? Just as with computer games like Call of Duty is played by a lot of younger veterans, it is something they like to do but it does not help them.


If it helps, then do it. Find what works for you. Just don't do it because it worked for someone you know. There is no one size fits all in any of this. Above all, don't give up finding exactly what you need to heal.

Cage fighting possible treatment for PTSD
by Sybil Hoffman
AZ Family.com
Posted on December 3, 2012

MESA, Ariz. -- The ultimate fighter series on Spike TV has catapulted mixed martial arts, or cage fighting, into the national spotlight. Now a group of Valley fighters say the violent, often bloody, sport should be classified as therapy.

At the American Pankration Academy, a mixed martial arts studio in Mesa, Kyle Dubay is a regular. But behind his warm smile looms a level of darkness, remnants of his three tours in Iraq.

"Every time that we were hit, it was always an ambush," he said. "It became the norm to get blown up, to get shot at."

When the former combat medic returned, he found himself spiraling out of control. It took months to realize he was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

"I get a lot of energy in my chest and it's a negative energy, but it builds up and it's powerful and I don't know how to get rid of it until I come in and I fight," Dubay said.
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