Yoga: Better Treatment or Better Placebo?

try to cognitively suppress by conscious attempts to distract themselves via motor restlessness or impulsive behavior. This combined with the hyperarousal symptoms [criterion D of DSM IV] makes differentiation from attention-deficit disorder difficult. Possibly, when pre-existing ADHD is a vulnerability factor to develop PTSD. Similar mechanisms hold good for other comorbid disorders also. In postdisaster situation, other factors like complicated grief reactions, survivor guilt and trauma-induced demoralization may occur. Differentiation of PTSD from other comorbid conditions is therefore difficult, but is very important to accomplish, as the treatment can vary. From the above, it is clear that clinicians should spend a considerable amount of time with children to elicit symptoms of PTSD, which may include play or projective psychological tests. One may like to use either semistructured interview schedules or self/parent report instruments. Though several of them are available for use in different age groups, none of them is deemed optimal (AACAP, 1998). Development of an instrument to tap PTSD in children of all age groups especially in the Indian setting is therefore very much a felt need.