Past Traumatic Events Research Articles

Like a Punch in the Gut: A Novel Perspective On Annual Recurrences of Ulcerative Colitis.

Ulcerative colitis (UC), a chronic inflammatory bowel disease, causes stomach pain, diarrhea, and rectal bleeding. The exact cause is unknown, but it is thought to involve genetic, environmental, and psychological factors. Some people experience annual flare-ups without obvious reason. This article adopts a theory-driven approach to consider how and why past traumatic events may contribute to annual flare-ups. We applied learning theory, which explains the development of re-experiencing phenomena in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), to better understand the occurrence of annual flares in patients living with UC. Two possibilities emerged in which associative learning may contribute to annual UC flares. First, flare-ups could be a physical response to sensory cues in the present that overlap with trauma experienced at the first onset of UC. Annual episodes may strengthen the UC flare as a learned physiological response to trauma reminders. Second, flare-ups may result from elevated stress due to trauma re-experiencing at anniversaries. Sensory features of the initial UC trauma may be associated with strong reactions, which generalize to similar stimuli, triggering re-experiencing symptoms and increasing psychological stress. Elevated stress raises glucocorticoid levels, promoting UC-specific inflammation. Stimulus discrimination from cognitive therapy for PTSD may help to over-ride the associations that have formed between sensory features of past trauma, linked reactions, and similar cues in the present. Research is needed to understand how traumatic events influence the onset and recurrence of ulcerative colitis, as well as the potential benefits of stimulus discrimination for reducing the frequency of annual flares.

Dyadic investigations of past traumatic events and affectionate touch frequency in couples.

Past traumatic events negatively affect romantic relationships, yet their impact on affectionate touch, an important predictor of psychological and relational well-being, remains unknown. In two preregistered studies with nonclinical samples, we hypothesized that traumatic events are negatively associated with affectionate touch frequency for both the victim (i.e., actor effect) and their romantic partner (i.e., partner effect). We also expected this negative link to be stronger for the people perceiving relatively low responsiveness and/or high insensitivity in their partner. We used secondary data from 70 Swiss couples in Study 1 and collected data online from 441 couples living in the United States or United Kingdom in Study 2. All couples were heterosexual, and both studies were dyadic and cross-sectional. Unlike our hypotheses, analyses with Actor-Partner Interdependence Models revealed no negative associations between past traumatic events and affectionate touch. In Study 1, we found no significant actor effects but small-sized positive partner effects of men's traumatic events on women's affectionate touch frequency. In Study 2, however, two out of three actor effects and one partner effect were positive with negligible to small sizes. Neither perceived partner responsiveness nor insensitivity had a moderating role. The association between past traumatic experiences and affectionate touch was inconsistently nonsignificant or positive but consistently nonnegative across our two studies. Our research demonstrated that past traumatic events did not inhibit individuals from expressing love and care to their partner through affectionate touch in our sample, even for varying levels of perceived partner responsiveness (insensitivity). (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

“I Cannot Tell Anyone:” There are Many Reasons

ABSTRACT Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate variables associated with difficulty disclosing past trauma. Across several prevalence studies, 26% of adults never disclosed childhood abuse until adulthood when they were asked in a research survey or interview question. In this Institutional Review Board approved study, group differences were examined (ability and inability to disclose a traumatic event) as well as predictors for difficulty disclosing past trauma. Method: A non-clinical population (N = 693) was examined to determine prevalence rates and group differences between participants unable to tell someone about a past traumatic event (10%) compared to those who could disclose past traumatic events (90%). Variables included pathological dissociative processing, internalized shame, coping strategies (task, emotion, avoidance), and cumulative trauma exposure. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine predicting variables for disclosure difficulties. Findings: The group that had difficulty disclosing a past traumatic event had more cumulative trauma, pathological dissociative processing, emotion-oriented coping, and shame. In the first logistic regression analyses, interpersonal traumatic events were predictors for the inability to disclose a traumatic event (classified 90% of group membership). In the second logistic regression, shame and cumulative traumatic exposure were predicting factors (classified 90% of group membership). Conclusion: Difficulty speaking about a traumatic event was associated with interpersonal adult and childhood traumatic events, more internalized shame, and cumulative trauma exposure. It is recommended that clinicians working with patients with substantial traumatic exposure address shame, pathological dissociative processing, and emotion-oriented coping strategies if they detect trauma disclosure difficulties.

PLES KAO HETEROTOPIJA PROTIV HEGEMONISTIČKOG DISKURSA TRAUMATIČNIH ISKUSTAVA

In this paper, we explore the dance as a practice and “Other” space, a counterhegemonic space which is affected by the existing social ordering, or existing power of traumatic discourse which is some kind of imposed discourse, while simultaneously resisting it. To explore these premises we will use Michel Foucault`s concept of heterotopia and apply it on the analysis of the dance as an artistic practice and possibilities to understand dance as a heterotopia in which dominant hegemonic discourses are reversed, and as a counterhegemonic space, as authors Christofidou and Milioni, emphases, that has a potential to disrupt and deconstruct hegemonic discourses of the past traumatic experiences or events. We argue that in order to be able to heal the traumas that are engraved in the body, and to understand the body as an expression and a canvas on which a crisis is outlined, we need bodily memories and stories, both those of survival, trauma and wounds, and those of healing. We demonstrate how dance may provide a counterhegemonic space, enable the reconstruction of the place of traumatic events, that are imprinted in body, into places of communication and reconstruction of the meaning, and how can dance invite individual to reflect on their identity and connect their fragmented self. Here we emphasize the meaning of movement – dance that opens the statics of the body to kinesthetic empathy, which in turn allows us to enter the spaces of unspoken body stories. The ethics of touch, proximity, and the ethics of the space between two bodies and what in these spaces "between" means to be, to be in that "not yet" (about-to-be) lead us in this direction. We assert that our bodies are both self-constituted as well as shaped by the collective, the society and history (personal or collective), and that we know by acting, primarily through the body, in synergy with the mind and the environment (enactive approach).

Body dysmorphia in a 23 year old patient with obsessive compulsive disorder: a case report

IntroductionBody dysmorphic disorder (BDD) was considered an anxiety disorder in the DSM-IV, but in the DSM-V was added to the obsessive-compulsive and related disorders category. BDD is a psychiatric disorder characterised by an excessive, persistent, and distressful preoccupation with a perceived defect in appearance. These perceived defects are slight and are unnoticed by others. People with BDD usually have poor insight and are preoccupied with a perceived physical defect which causes them to check on it repeatedly. This leads to an impairment in psychosocial functioning, depression, and an increase in suicide risk.ObjectivesReview how dismorphophobia (BDD) and obsessive compulsive syndrome intersect, the differences they present in symptomatology, prevalence and treatment.MethodsPresentation of a patient’s case and review of existing literature, in regards to body dysmorphic syndrome and its similarities and differences with respect to obsessive compulsive syndrome.ResultsThere are common features between both disorders, which are genetic overlap, physical past traumatic events, sex ratio, trait of perfectionism and body image disturbance.Studies have found the prevalence of BDD in patients with OCD in a large patient sample was 8.7% to 15% compared to 3% in non-OCD.The risk of comorbidity of OCD-BDD is three times higher in samples with a primary diagnosis of BDD compared to those with a primary diagnosis of OCD with 27.5% and 10.4%, respectively.BDD as well as OCD must be managed with pharmacological and psychotherapy treatment. A selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor is the recommended first-line medication for BDD, even if appearance beliefs are delusional in nature. Serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI) doses and trial durations are similar to those used for OCD; higher doses and a longer treatment trial are recommended than those typically used for depression and most other disorders. Cognitive-behavioral therapy that is specifically tailored to BDD is the psychosocial treatment of choice. Simply treating BDD as if it were OCD is not recommended.ConclusionsThere are limitations included a restricted number of studies overall, an absence of studies comparing biological parameters, and the frequent inclusion of participants with comorbid body dysmorphic disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The current nosological status of body dysmorphic disorder is somewhat tenuous and requires further investigation, with particular focus on dimensional, biological and aetiological elements.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Trauma-informed music therapy with adult survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault: A scoping review

Trauma is a phenomenon that shapes our lives and can manifest in symptoms both overt and hidden. There are myriad causes and activators of trauma: it is pervasive, and therapists can presume that the people we see in sessions have experienced one or more traumas. Across cultures, neurobiological responses to trauma are shared: dysregulation of affect, changes in neurological functioning and processing, and prolonged stress reactions are common outcomes experienced by people from around the world. Intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual assault (SA) create traumatic symptoms and responses in survivors; these can be debilitating and life-altering events. Music as a therapeutic modality offers survivors a way to process the effects of past and present traumatic events in a way that does not rely solely on cognitive processing or for survivors to relive memories that activate more stress or cause retraumatization. The purpose of this scoping review was to identify salient and current trends in music therapy that integrate a trauma-informed approach to working with women-identifying survivors of IPV and SA. Findings indicate a lack of continuity in theoretical and practical approaches. A theme of resiliency arose, and therapeutic experiences of songwriting, clinical improvisation, and active music making emerged as primary foci for clinical work.

SHOULD THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC BE CONSIDERED A TRAUMATIC STRESSOR? SOME CONCERNS FOR MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS

This opinion article argues that it may not be appropriate to regard the Covid-19 pandemic as a traumatic stressor. Persons diagnosed with Covid-19 have typically been concerned about events that might have occurred in the future such as severe illness, hospitalisation and death, access to treatment, the welfare of dependents, and stigma and discrimination. Their concerns are thus future-oriented rather than anchored to a past traumatic event, which is the requirement for a diagnosis of PTSD. If the criteria for what is considered a traumatic stressor are widened, there isa risk that the concept of trauma may become so diluted that many events, even mildly distressing ones, may be regarded as traumatic. Social workers and other health professionals should take these matters into account when attending to the emotional and psychological needs of persons affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Keywords: Covid-19, distress, pandemic, post-traumatic stress, trauma

‘Volviendo a Vivir’ (coming back to life): Urban trauma, activism and building emancipatory futures

This paper engages recent writing on urban trauma, exploring its connection with the gendered forms of activism that displaced women practise as they seek to rebuild more emancipatory urban futures. Their activisms are situated in the context of multiple, ongoing and intersecting forms of violence from intimates, armed groups and the state, including institutional neglect (in and of the city) that is racialised and gendered. We draw on participatory action research undertaken with women in the Colombian cities of Bogotá and Medellín. Using creative audio-visual methods over several months, women co-researchers produced a documentary in which they chart the ways that they claim spaces of the city inside and outside their homes. We draw particular attention here to the temporal dimension of urban trauma as it intersects with migrant women’s spatial biographies; this has consequences for their activisms which also transcend the sites and scales of public and private spheres, national and global crises and individual and community responses. We argue that it is the gradually accruing and multiplying character of violence and trauma which in turn necessitates the gradual and multiscalar development of these activisms. The women used ecological metaphors of rooting and growth to explain how, through these activisms and directly informed by past traumatic events, they ‘come back to life’. Together, they build solidarity networks and alliances, and imagine and practise alternative feminist urban futures and modes of recovery in their new urban homes.

Rethinking “transfer” in the transgenerational transmission of trauma: A qualitative study of the 1984 anti-Sikh violence

Traumatic events, in their aftermath, often induce feelings of injustice or exclusion due to the hierarchies of survivor/non-survivor, religion, race, gender, and so forth, as well as the apathy of governance. However, the transfer of trauma and healing from survivors to their next generation is conceptualized around the past traumatic event and post-traumatic stress disorder. A constructivist grounded theory analysis of the voices of parent survivors and their next generation associated with the 1984 anti-Sikh violence in India is utilized to explore a potential bidirectional transfer of social suffering and healing within the parent–child dyad. The categories suggesting a bidirectional transfer of social suffering are (a) “child inundated,” due to the inadequacy of resources or support, and (b) “parent’s remorse” over being incapacitated and unable to care. The findings do not clearly indicate parent-to-child transfer of healing, yet there are indications of parents’ healing being contributed to by children’s positive and uplifting experiences in the category “parent’s satisfaction through child’s growth and happiness.”

"Women Friendly": A Childbirth Preparation Intervention in Israel for Women with Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Pregnant women with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), who have experienced traumatic events such as sexual abuse and traumatic births, are particularly vulnerable to experiencing extreme fear of childbirth complications during labor and traumatic deliveries. In this commentary, we review the literature on this group of women and their specific needs during pregnancy and childbirth. We present a childbirth preparation intervention for pregnant women with PTSD symptoms, "Women Friendly", designed in Israel and gradually becoming available in the community and Israeli hospitals. This intervention is intended for women with high levels of fear of childbirth who are unmotivated or unable to undergo traditional psychotherapy that focuses on exposure to and processing of past traumatic event(s). It is based on birth-oriented thinking, principles of positive psychology, and trauma-informed care. In addition to the five sessions offered to pregnant women, medical staff are provided with 19 training sessions on the "Women Friendly" approach. Qualitative and quantitative research should examine the effectiveness of this intervention. Should results be encouraging, this intervention could be more widely implemented in Israel and abroad and applied in broader contexts, such as gynecological check-ups and medical examinations, interventions, and surgery.

Melancholia and Traumatic Reenactment in Contemporary American Fiction: A Caruthian Reading of Gillian Flynn's Novels

Gillian Schieber Flynn's fiction is laced with such recurring themes as dysfunctional nature of families, childhood abuse and neglect, and tragic murder of the loved ones. The current study, therefore, will set out to prove that the central characters of Flynn's Sharp Objects, Dark Places, and Gone Girl have been traumatized in their childhood, the effect of which still haunts them through hallucinations, traumatic flashbacks, and nightmares. It will be contended that the characters are still melancholic after many a year, thus fixated on past traumatic events, which they reenact through diverse psychological phenomena. In addition, it will be averred that the traumas of individuals and a collective body of people are ineluctably intertwined with each other in Flynn's fiction; consequently, not only are the characters' traumas transferred to the other members of society, but also the collective trauma of fictional communities gets transmitted into the private sphere of characters' lives. To that end, the article will have recourse to Cathy Caruth's trauma theory and terminology as the underpinning theoretical framework of the foregoing study. Furnishing a novel Caruthian reading of Flynn's novels, the current research intends to contribute to the existing literature addressing the said author's narratives.

Past Traumatic Life Events, Postpartum PTSD, and the Role of Labor Support.

The aim of this study was to investigate the association of postpartum post-traumatic stress disorder (PP-PTSD) symptoms and subjective rates of traumatic birth experience with past traumatic life events (physical and sexual assault, child abuse, perinatal loss, previous traumatic birth experience, and the cumulative traumatic experience). A sample of Russian women (n = 2579) who gave birth within the previous 12 months, filled in a web-based survey, where they reported demographic and obstetric characteristics and past traumatic experiences, evaluated their birth experience (0 = not traumatic, 10 = extremely traumatic), and completed the City Birth Trauma Scale (CBiTS). We found that PP-PTSD symptoms were higher among women who previously experienced physical (F = 22.02, p < 0.001) and sexual (F = 15.98, p < 0.001) assault and child abuse (F = 69.25, p < 0.001), with only associations with child abuse (F = 21.14, p < 0.001) remaining significant for subjective rates of traumatic birth experience. Perinatal loss and previous traumatic birth showed moderate but inconsistent effects. Support during labor did not have a buffering effect for participants with past traumatic experiences but showed a universally protective effect against PP-PTSD. Trauma-informed practices and allowing women to have a supportive birth team of choice during childbirth are promising avenues to minimize the incidence of PP-PTSD and improve the childbirth experience for all women.

Impact of War Trauma on Interpersonal Mistrust among Syrian Refugees in Germany and Their Interpersonal Trust in Germans

In forced migration literature, there is a lack of studies on the impact of war trauma on interpersonal mistrust among refugees and their interpersonal trust in members of the host society. To contribute to filling this gap, the author studied the impact of war trauma on interpersonal mistrust among Syrian refugees in Germany and their interpersonal trust in Germans. The data are based on semi-structured qualitative interviews with 20 Syrian refugees and asylum-seekers conducted in 2018 and 2019. The author argues that because traumatised refugees are powerfully influenced by past traumatic events experienced in their home country, they tend to mistrust people who can be associated with the place where these traumatic experiences occurred. In contrast, they are inclined to trust people who cannot be linked to the geographical location of the traumatic experiences. The main result of this study is that similarity—that of war-traumatised refugees sharing the same socio-cultural backgrounds—leads to interpersonal mistrust, while dissimilarity leads to interpersonal trust. The author of this paper calls for considering trust-building among war traumatised refugees, which has significant importance for refugee integration.

Active Versus Comforting Aid: The SIX C's Model for Psychological First Aid: Empirical Evaluation. A Retrospective Study

Introduction:Compassion, calming down and providing aid are common ways of helping people in need soon after traumatic events. However, such forms of help were seldom tested and other research suggests that active coping may have more positive long-term effects. The SIX C's model was created to provide simple and effective evidence-based Psychological First Aid guidelines that help shift the person from helpless into active and effective activation in a very short time. The model emphasizes the need for cognitive communication as well as effective activation in contrast to the previous concepts of calming and emotional communicationMethod:This retrospective cross-sectional study examined empirically the SIX C's Model's basic concepts. We checked the association between whether people received activating versus more passive forms of aid during crises, their self-efficacy and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. 428 participants completed scales on the type of aid received during past traumatic events including activating aid (encouraging active and effective responses) versus passive aid (receiving compassion, calming down and general aid), as well as their current general self-efficacy (GSE) and PTSD symptomsResults:Results revealed that passive aid was not related to PTSD while activating aid correlated inversely with PTSD. Importantly, both resilience and GSE emerged as mediators and moderators between activating aid and PTSD. The moderation showed that receiving activating aid was associated with less PTSD only in people low on resilience or GSEConclusion:The study revealed a major role for self-efficacy in protecting people from PTSD. Self-efficacy not only statistically mediated the relationship between active aid and PTSD but also moderated this relationship. The findings underline the importance of encouraging the person to act effectively during the event and to maintain cognitive communication. This type of aid leads to increased self-efficacy and contributes to the reduction of risk for PTSD.

Mnemonic narrative method in the trilogy by Agota Kristof (“The Notebook”, “The Proof”, “The Third Lie”)

The article analyzes three novels by the Hungarian-Swiss writer Agota Kristof through the poetics of memory. The trilogy is dedicated to the representation of the consciousness of the person whose life is destroyed by a series of historical cataclysms. Every novel presents a slightly different version of Lucas and Сlaus brothers life, their memories of the past traumatic events. In the hero's memories, the reality is distorted to such an extent that the very existence of the twin brother from the first novel is called into question. At the artistic level, the possibility of reconstructing the true course of events is constantly problematized. In this regard, the trilogy can be considered from the point of view of implementing the mnemonic narrative method in it - a special narrative method, which involves the creation of a novel hero character, whose inner life is turned to the past. This method is based on a conscious creative approach to description of the retracing mind and an approach to reflection about the process and description methods.

The Risk of the Development of Secondary Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among Pediatric Health Care Providers: A Systematic Review

Background: Secondary PTSD is defined as the natural, consequential behaviors and emotions that result from knowledge about a traumatic event experienced by a significant other deriving from working with suffering individuals. Pediatric health providers with symptoms of PTSD report problems with relationships and general life dissatisfaction as well as and anxiety, depression and burnout syndrome. Aim: The aim of this systematic review was to estimate the risk of developing secondary PTSD among pediatric health care providers as well as all additional contributing factors. In more detail, we investigated the PTSD symptomatology between pediatric health care providers and the extent to which parameters such as the job, gender, department and other factors had an impact on the mental health status of pediatric health care providers. Methodology: We searched all published English papers in PubMed, Google Scholar and the Cochrane Library from September to November 2022. We excluded reviews, systematic reviews and meta-analyses as well as letters to editors. From a total of 748 papers, we included only 12 research articles that met the admission criteria. Results: According to our results, the prevalence of secondary PTSD ranges from 13% to 94%. Burnout, nurses, the female gender, intensive care units, past traumatic life events and a psychiatric history identified as factors contributing to the development of secondary PTSD. Conclusions: Health policy-makers should take the specificity in the working environment of the pediatric sector seriously into consideration, especially emergency departments.

Traumatic Birth Experience and Breastfeeding Ineffectiveness - a Literature Review.

A traumatic birth experience can affect the breastfeeding process and make it ineffective. The aim of this study was to identify the factors associated with breastfeeding ineffectiveness after birth trauma, through the world literature. There are several factors responsible for a traumatic birth experience, such as obstetric violence, postpartum complications and complications induced by doctors, invasive vaginal deliveries, emergency caesarean sections, admission of a neonate to the Neonatal Intensive Unit, past traumatic life events and mental health problems. The aim of this study was to identify the factors associated with breastfeeding ineffectiveness after birth trauma, through the world literature. An extended search was conducted to identify relevant for breastfeeding and traumatic birth experiences manuscripts for this study. Databases including PubMed, PsycINFO and Google Scholar. The search was limited to articles published in English the last decade. Factors that contribute to the ineffectiveness of breastfeeding after a traumatic birth are hormonal, medication, insufficient support from the partner, reliving the traumatic birth experience, past traumatic experiences in the woman's life and her mental state. The mental trauma during childbirth is complex and multifactorial. Therefore, it is necessary to take measures on the one hand to prevent mental trauma during childbirth and on the other hand to make interventions to deal with the consequences of the trauma on the mental health of the mother and on breastfeeding which is directly affected.

Billy Pilgrim's Traumatic Symptoms and Triggers in Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five

Psychological trauma is one of the psychological problems which may happen to a human being. Someone is known to suffer from trauma if he or she shows or experiences some special symptoms. This psychological problem, trauma, can happen due to some triggers or causes. Relating to this problem, this article is about Billy’s psychological trauma in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five. Billy is the main character of the novel who suffers from trauma. His psychological disease can be known from the symptoms he experiences or he shows. Besides the symptoms of trauma experienced by Billy, the triggers or causes of Billy's trauma are also explained in this article, which both of them as the objectives of the research. The analysis uses literary theory of trauma by Cathy Caruth. Because trauma relates to psychology, the psychological approach is used in this research. The method used to analyze Billy’s trauma is descriptive-analytical which means that the data relating to the topic which are taken from the novel are described and analyzed based on the objectives of the research. The findings show that symptoms experienced by Billy are recurrent uncontrollable memories of past traumatic events, losing his enthusiasm for life, delusion about Tralfamadorian planet as well as his adventure in time, and sleep disturbance followed by weeping for no reason. The triggers or causes of Billy’s trauma are the result of his participation in World War II where he witnesses many horrific events like the bombing event in Dresden city and getting humiliation as well as harsh treatment from his fellow soldiers, fellow prisoners, and German soldiers. The other cause is facing the events after the 2nd World War that exacerbates his trauma that is the plane crash he is travelling in and the death of his wife due to carbon monoxide poisoning. In conclusion, after analyzing Billy’s traumatic symptoms and the triggers, it can be stated that Billy really suffers from psychological trauma. All the traumatic events influence Billy’s life, how he sees life, and he responds about life and death.

PIN Polio: “Proteksi”, Masa Lalu, dan Materialitas

In 1996, there was a national scale immunization program called Polio National Immunization Week (PIN Polio) by the Indonesian Ministry of Health. The people at Benda Kerep Village, Cirebon became one of the targets of the health development program, but the program was failed in this area. This article focuses on the process of producing meaning by actors involved in the issues associated with PIN Polio program, so that controversy regarding this program is inevitable.&#x0D; This qualitative research was conducted in 2016 and additional occasional visits until 2022. There were eight informants involved in this study, consisting of two influential clerics (kyai), a mother who accepted the implementation of the PIN Polio program, and two others who don’t, and three health workers from the Health Office Cirebon. Data was collected using in-depth interview and observation techniques to understand why Polio PIN program in 2016 was failed in Benda Kerep Village, so that the level of community participation was very low in Benda.&#x0D; The results show that the stories behind the failure of implementation PIN Polio in 1996 at Benda Kerep has become the background of the failure of the program with various events that are considered as the impact of Polio injection. This is because stories of these past traumatic events are still circulating amongst the Benda Kerep people – even though they have not experienced it directly. It is argued in this article that language practice do not stand alone, it is closely associated with the existence of material health, such as syringes, uniforms and crowds of people who reinforce the meaning of past events.

The Involvement of Past Traumatic Life Events in the Development of Postpartum PTSD after Cesarean Delivery.

Background: Although childbirth is considered a natural process, a high percentage of postpartum women consider it traumatic. Any previous traumatic event in a woman’s life can be revived through a traumatic birth experience, especially after a complicated vaginal delivery or cesarean delivery. The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between previous traumatic life events and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in postpartum women after cesarean section and which specific events exerted the greatest influence. Methods: A sample of 469 women who had undergone cesarean sections at a Greek university hospital consented to participate in this prospective study. Data from a medical/demographic questionnaire, life events checklist, perinatal stressor criterion A, and posttraumatic stress checklist were used to evaluate past traumatic life events and diagnose postpartum posttraumatic stress. Results: Out of 469 women, 25.97% had PTSD and 11.5% a PTSD profile, while 2.7% had PTSD and 2.7% a PTSD profile. Also, it appeared that only specific direct exposure to a traumatic event and/or witnessing one were predictors of postpartum PTSD. Conclusions: This survey identified specific traumatic life events, psychiatric history, stressor perinatal criterion A, preterm birth, and emergency cesarean section as risk factors for the development of PTSD or a PTSD profile in women after cesarean delivery.