Veteran looks to the future after prolonged exposure therapy

Renè Toney’s situation was bad. She lost her job, her wife and almost her home and her life. That was before her prolonged exposure (PE) therapy.

Toney hadn’t slept for three days and doesn’t remember much about her experience, but she knows she owes her life to the Veterans Crisis Line responder who is the reason she woke up in the hospital.  

It was then that Toney (pictured above) agreed to stop saying no and said yes to a residential rehabilitation and treatment program at Coatesville VA to treat the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) she had been experiencing for more than 20 years. 

Now, just two days before going home, this combat Veteran stands on the edge of tomorrow and reflects on the treatment program while looking forward to doing the work in front of her to repair the relationships in her life.

Chaos and crisis

By the time Toney arrived at Coatesville VA, there was one thing she was sure of.

“What I realized when I got here was that I was going to have to get really brutally honest and accept whatever treatment was coming my way,” she shared.

The traumatic events that fueled her PTSD happened in the 1990s. Toney spent more than 20 years in and out of counseling, detox and rehab programs in the private sector. The medication-only treatment they offered fell short, and she continued to self-medicate with drugs and alcohol. She wasn’t always able to suppress memories and would relive moments over and over in her head.

The chaos and crises in her life grew more frequent and intense. Eventually her wife left and she was fired from her job. Toney was on the verge of losing her house as well. The only things she hadn’t lost on the day she called the Crisis Line were a few friends, her therapy dog, Jackson, who remains by her side 24/7, and her life.

Prolonged exposure therapy

When Toney’s psychologist challenged her to go back to the moments she was constantly reliving and talk about them using a process called prolonged exposure therapy, she wasn’t comfortable with the idea.

“You don’t. You don’t understand. I’ve been trying to push ‘these demons’ down and now you want me to not only talk about it but talk about it in first person? I don’t know how that’s going to work,” she recalled.

Prolonged exposure therapy, or talk therapy, is psychotherapy for PTSD. It is just one type of exposure treatment that assists patients in gradually approaching difficult memories, feelings and thoughts related to their trauma. By repeatedly recalling and processing avoided memories, individuals can decrease or eliminate many or most of their symptoms of PTSD, anxiety and depression.

Nightfall was a trigger for Toney, causing her to “get ready for the fight.”

“Now I don’t have the fear of the nighttime. That anxiety doesn’t start around dusk because the fight is over. For the first time in my life, I don’t hear chatter or voices. I can go to bed at nighttime. Not only am I getting to sleep, staying asleep, I feel rested,” she said of her experience with PET.

Toney is now looking forward to the days in front of her.

“The real world isn’t going to be this kind and nice and gentle and understanding about where you’ve been and where you are. But I’ve never been more equipped to deal with those issues. As anxiety provoking as it is, as uncertain as it is, I’m looking forward to it,” she added.

If you are a Veteran who is finding it hard to manage your PTSD, talk to your care provider about your PTSD treatment options. Are you a Veteran in crisis or concerned about one? You don’t have to be enrolled in VA benefits or health care to call the Veterans Crisis Line. Simply Dial 988 then press 1.