Use of and satisfaction with support received among survivors from three Scandinavian countries after the 2004 Southeast Asian tsunami

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 436-440 ◽  
Author(s):  
P.O. Michel ◽  
S. Rosendal ◽  
L. Weisaeth ◽  
T. Heir
Keyword(s):  
Posttraumatic Stress ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Informal Support ◽  
Stress Reactions ◽  
Home Support ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
Disaster Survivors ◽  
Degree Of Satisfaction ◽  
Close Relatives ◽  
High Degree

AbstractIntroductionThere is limited guidance regarding effective preventions for post-disaster mental health problems and what kind of support is preferred by disaster survivors.AimTo describe the use of and satisfaction with support in three Scandinavian countries after the tsunami and analyzing the association between support and posttraumatic stress reactions.MethodThe sample comprises 6772 responders who returned to Scandinavia from the tsunami-struck countries of Southeast Asia in 2004.ResultsMost were satisfied with informal support on site. Support from embassies/consulates was not received well, leaving about 64% of the Danes/Norwegians and 73% of the Swedes dissatisfied. After returning home, support from close relatives rendered highest degree of satisfaction. Consultation with general practitioner (GP) was reported by 63% of Norwegians, 40% of Danes, and 16% of Swedes. Most responders (60–77%) were satisfied with their GP, although Norwegians were least satisfied. Using support was associated with higher levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms.ConclusionsInformal support was used to a high degree and rendered considerable satisfaction in all three countries, while the use of and satisfaction with formal support varied more. Lack of satisfaction with embassies and consulates may indicate deficiencies in the authorities’ preparedness in assisting disaster stricken citizens abroad.

scholarly journals A network analysis of post-traumatic stress and psychosis symptoms

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Amy Hardy ◽  
Ciaran O'Driscoll ◽  
Craig Steel ◽  
Mark van der Gaag ◽  
David van den Berg
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Stress ◽  
Graphical Model ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Auditory Hallucinations ◽  
Psychotic Symptoms ◽  
Stress Reactions ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Psychological Mechanisms ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
Post Traumatic

Abstract Background Understanding the interplay between trauma-related psychological mechanisms and psychotic symptoms may improve the effectiveness of interventions for post-traumatic stress reactions in psychosis. Network theory assumes that mental health problems persist not because of a common latent variable, but from dynamic feedback loops between symptoms, thereby addressing the heterogeneous and overlapping nature of traumagenic and psychotic diagnoses. This is a proof-of-concept study examining interactions between post-traumatic stress symptoms, which were hypothesized to reflect trauma-related psychological mechanisms, and auditory hallucinations and delusions. Method Baseline data from two randomised controlled trials (N = 216) of trauma-focused therapy in people with post-traumatic stress symptoms (87.5% met diagnostic criteria for PTSD) and psychotic disorder were analysed. Reexperiencing, hyperarousal, avoidance, trauma-related beliefs, auditory hallucinations and delusional beliefs were used to estimate a Gaussian graphical model along with expected node influence and predictability (proportion of explained variance). Results Trauma-related beliefs had the largest direct influence on the network and, together with hypervigilance, were implicated in the shortest paths from flashbacks to delusions and auditory hallucinations. Conclusions These findings are in contrast to previous research suggesting a central role for re-experiencing, emotional numbing and interpersonal avoidance in psychosis. Trauma-related beliefs were the psychological mechanism most associated with psychotic symptoms, although not all relevant mechanisms were measured. This work demonstrates that investigating multiple putative mediators may clarify which processes are most relevant to trauma-related psychosis. Further research should use network modelling to investigate how the spectrum of traumatic stress reactions play a role in psychotic symptoms.

Alleviation of Moral Disgust, Shame, and Guilt in Posttraumatic Stress Reactions

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 801-836 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Ojserkis ◽  
Dean McKay ◽  
Christal L. Badour ◽  
Matthew T. Feldner ◽  
Justin Arocho ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Posttraumatic Stress ◽  
Traumatic Event ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Stress Reactions ◽  
Empirically Supported ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
Moral Disgust ◽  
Shame And Guilt ◽  
Adjunctive Intervention ◽  
Cognitive Challenge

Research suggests that moral disgust, shame, and guilt are present in posttraumatic psychopathology. However, it is unclear that these emotional states are responsive to empirically supported interventions for posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). This study explored the relations among moral disgust, shame, guilt, and PTSS, and examined comprehensive distancing (CD) as a novel intervention for these emotional states in undergraduates with elevated PTSS. Participants were randomly assigned to use a CD or a cognitive challenge task in response to personalized scripts of a traumatic event. Both interventions were associated with decreases in disgust, moral disgust, shame, and guilt. Contrary to predictions, there were no significant differences between the exercises in the reduction of negative emotions. In addition, PTSS severity was correlated with trauma-related guilt as well as state guilt and shame, but not trait or state measures of disgust or moral disgust. This proof of concept project sets the stage for further research examining CD as an alternative or adjunctive intervention for posttraumatic stress reactions with strong features of moral disgust, shame, and guilt.

The Mediating Effect of Perceived Social Acknowledgment on the Relationship Between Patient Assaults and Posttraumatic Stress Reactions in Emergency Nurses

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (18) ◽  
pp. 3833-3849
Author(s):  
Ruiyuan Guan ◽  
Jun Gao ◽  
Guangzhi Liu ◽  
Fei Cheng ◽  
Baolan Ge
Keyword(s):  
Posttraumatic Stress ◽  
Injury Severity ◽  
Mediating Effect ◽  
Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Stress Reactions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
Patient Assaults ◽  
The Relationship

This study explored whether posttraumatic stress symptoms resulted from workplace assaults were mediated by the perception of social acknowledgment by the victim. A sample of 444 emergency room nurses in China completed questionnaires measuring the frequency and types of patient assaults, the severity of physical injury, the perception of social acknowledgment, and the posttraumatic stress symptoms. Cross-sectional design, multiregression, and bootstrapping mediation analyses were used to test the hypotheses. Results showed that general disapproval and family disapproval mediated the relationship between the frequency of patient assaults and the severity of posttraumatic stress symptoms. These two factors also mediated the links between the injury severity of patient assaults and the development of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Implications for clinical practice and future research were discussed.

scholarly journals Correlates of mental health in occupations at risk for traumatization: A cross-sectional study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah K. Schäfer ◽  
Marie Roxanne Sopp ◽  
Marlene Staginnus ◽  
Johanna Lass-Hennemann ◽  
Tanja Michael
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Posttraumatic Stress ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
General Mental Health ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
Trait Resilience

Abstract Background Hospitals, police stations, and fire departments are highly demanding work places. Staff members are regularly exposed to various stressors including traumatic events. Correspondingly, several studies report high rates of mental health issues among these occupations. Nevertheless, despite these challenging circumstances, some staff members manage to sustain their mental health. The current study is the first to investigate correlates of mental health among three different highly demanding occupations. Methods The present cross-sectional survey investigated health-benefitting factors (sense of coherence – SOC, trait resilience, locus of control – LOC) and psychopathological symptoms (general mental health problems, posttraumatic stress, burnout) in medical staff ( n = 223), police officers ( n = 257), and firefighters ( n = 100). Results Among all occupations, SOC, trait resilience, and an internal LOC were negatively associated with general mental health problems, posttraumatic stress, and burnout symptoms. By contrast, all these outcome measures were positively correlated with an external LOC. Multiple regression models including all health-benefitting factors as predictors explained 56% of the variance in general mental health problems and 27% in posttraumatic stress symptoms. Among all occupations, SOC was the strongest predictor of both general mental health problems and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Multigroup path analyses revealed minor differences across occupations, mainly driven by a stronger influence of LOC in police officers. Conclusion Across all occupations, SOC was identified as the most important health-benefitting factor. Future longitudinal studies should further examine the causal link between health-benefitting factors and mental distress in different work places. Such studies will also allow for further development and evaluation of resilience promoting programs.

scholarly journals A cross-sectional study of mother-child agreement on PTSD symptoms in a south Indian post-tsunami sample

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Exenberger ◽  
David Riedl ◽  
Kumuthavalli Rangaramanujam ◽  
Vijai Amirtharaj ◽  
Florian Juen
Keyword(s):  
Posttraumatic Stress ◽  
Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms ◽  
Indian Ocean Tsunami ◽  
Ptsd Symptoms ◽  
Stress Reactions ◽  
Trauma Symptoms ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Living Situation ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
South Indian

Abstract Background Few studies examine caregiver-child agreement on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in non-Western cultures. The present study investigated mother-child agreement for PTSD symptoms in a South Indian sample, which was affected by the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004. Methods Data was collected four years post-disaster. In total, 80 mothers rated PTSD symptoms for their 164 children and gave information about their own trauma symptoms. In addition, the children aged 8 to 17 reported about their own PTSD symptoms. Results Results showed that mother-child agreement on posttraumatic stress symptoms was poor, and a child’s age, gender and living situation (fishing village vs. family-based out-of-home care) did not positively influence this concordance. Moreover, mothers’ own posttraumatic symptoms were strongly related to maternal reports of the child’s PTSD symptoms. Multivariate analyses showed that mothers’ PTSD symptoms were the only significant predictor for discrepancies in the rating of the child’s PTSD symptoms. That means, if mothers reported clinically relevant PTSD symptoms, the likelihood for disagreement on the child’s PTSD ratings more than doubled. Neither age, nor gender nor the living situation had an influence on children’s self-rated posttraumatic stress reactions. Conclusions In general, long-term monitoring of posttraumatic stress symptoms of mothers and children should be planned by relief actions as recovery processes are decelerated through lacking resources in developing countries such as India. Specifically, the assessment of mothers’ trauma symptoms is inevitable because the mothers’ own responses to disaster highly influence their assessment of their children’s symptoms. Mother-child agreement is discussed against the background of socio-cultural aspects.

Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms among Assault-injured Youth: Parallel Process Models Addressing Comorbidity

2021 ◽  
pp. 0044118X2110326
Author(s):  
Kamryn S. Morris ◽  
Sarah Lindstrom Johnson ◽  
Joel A. Fein ◽  
Tina L. Cheng
Keyword(s):  
Posttraumatic Stress ◽  
Internalizing Symptoms ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Cumulative Effect ◽  
Externalizing Symptoms ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms ◽  
Personal Factors ◽  
Stress Symptoms ◽  
Over Time

Community violence and its physical health consequences are well known among youth living in urban settings. However, less is known about the cumulative effect of contextual and demographic risk factors on posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) among vulnerable youth. Longitudinal data (baseline, 9-month, 21-month) were analyzed to investigate trajectories of PTSS, internalizing, and externalizing symptoms among 188 youth ( Mage 12.87, 60.6% male) treated for an assault injury in an emergency department. Youth exhibited decreased mental health problems over time. Higher levels of internalizing symptoms related to decreased PTSS over time, while higher levels of PTSS predicted increased externalizing symptoms over time, thus underscoring the importance of understanding comorbidity. Gender and stressful life events were significantly associated with initial levels of symptoms and trajectories. These findings suggest the importance of understanding PTSS in the context of environments and personal factors to support appropriate treatment.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document