Running Head: Hypnotherapy under Fire Hypnotherapy under Fire: Efficacy of Heart-centered Hynotherapy in the Treatment of Iraq War Veterans with Posttraumatic Stress

A growing literature addressing the issue of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has appeared in the decades following the Vietnam War. However, only a small portion of this literature represents empirical investigations of hypnotherapy as form of efficacious therapy for PTSD and its implications. This investigation seeks to define the extent of treatment success of heart-centered hypnotherapy versus traditional cognitive behavioral therapy, which has been considered the most efficacious treatment for PTSD without the use of medication and critical incidence stress debriefings which have been widely used as an by military combat stress teams when soldiers present with trauma reactions. This study showed Heart Centered Hypnotherapy is a most effective means of treating PTSD.