Peter Tuerk, the director of a VA PTSD program, introduces how we process experiences and trauma. Using examples from his research, he describes how it’s possible to process memories and their associated meanings to overcome a traumatic incident. When active avoidance impedes natural recovery the most effective healing is facilitated through treatment designed to limit avoidance and to assist with the processing of relevant information.

Peter Tuerk is the section chief of the PTSD Clinical Team at the VA in Charleston, South Carolina and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Medical University of South Carolina. His clinical research and training focuses on the treatment of combat-related PTSD in the areas of therapy effectiveness, treatment enhancement and dissemination, as well as telehealth and applied technologies. The author of 40 publications regarding the integration of technology into treatment, Dr. Tuerk has made numerous presentations, in the U.S. and internationally. What he has learned and developed through the VA, he has transformed to share with others. Dr. Tuerk founded the Japanese/U.S. Evidence-based Mental Health Response Initiative (JEMRI), a non-profit organization that supports the dissemination of effective PTSD treatment for people who have experienced natural disasters.