Brain research suggests that traumatic memories are processed as current experiences

Ideally, such treatments can help transform the traumatic memory into one that is more similar to regular, sad memories. “It’s like having a block in the right place,” he said. “If I can access a memory, I know it’s a memory. I know it won’t happen to me now.”

Dr. Ruth Lanius, the director of PTSD research at the University of Western Ontario, who was not involved in the study, described its findings as “groundbreaking,” both because it establishes that traumatic memories have different trajectories and because it indicates that key mechanisms for Traumatic memories may involve less explored areas of the brain. Much research into PTSD has focused on the amygdala, the brain’s stress-sensing center, and the hippocampus, she said. The posterior cingulate cortex is “really involved in reliving memories” and in seeking self-relevance, which could explain why a sensory memory can cause overwhelming fear or panic.

“If a soldier hears fireworks, he may run and take cover,” said Dr. Lanius. “Traumatic memories are not remembered, they are relived and re-experienced.”

Doctors, she said, can use these findings to treat patients who “don’t feel like the trauma is over,” using therapies that “bring context so you know, ‘Oh, that happened in the past.’ said researchers should explore therapies such as mindfulness, which are known to activate the parts of the brain known to provide context.

If biological markers for PTSD can ultimately be identified, it would be “an important scientific contribution,” resolving the field’s disagreement over which experiences constitute trauma, says Brian Marx, deputy director of Behavioral Science Division of the National Center for PTSD. who was not involved in the research.