The beta-adrenergic–receptor blocker propranolol reduces physical symptoms of anxiety such as tachycardia and sweating and, when paired with exposure therapy, can reduce phobic responses to spiders. Now in trials, propranolol combined with trauma activation has reduced symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The most common traumas were sexual trauma, physical assaults, motor-vehicle accidents, and combat trauma. Participants received or placebo 1 hour before trauma reactivation. This task involved writing a first-person account of the most upsetting moments of the trauma, including bodily sensations, and reading the account to a therapist. At each subsequent weekly visit, participants received the medication 90 minutes before rereading and, if necessary, editing these accounts. Although there were about 10% of patients that dropped out of the trials due to side effects to propranolol, it was associated with superior posttreatment improvements in all groups that received the drug vs. placebo, and the effect was still on-going at 26 weeks.