There are many factors contributing to individual variations in the response to stressful experiences. The present study evaluated the patterns of stress responses according to attachment representations in 28 adults from a community sample, plus 46 subjects expected to be particularly sensitive to stress, having been exposed during childhood and/or adolescence to traumatizing events such as abuse or potentially lethal illnesses.

This meta-analysis evaluates the efficacy of imagery rehearsal as a treatment for nightmares, general sleep disturbance, and symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Bibliographic databases and cited references were searched to identify clinical trials of imagery rehearsal in individuals with post-trauma nightmares. Thirteen studies met inclusion criteria and reported sleep and post-traumatic stress outcomes in sufficient detail to calculate effect sizes.

This article explores the experiences of fire and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel during and immediately after a technological event using a phenomenological approach. Personnel engaged in the rescue operations during and immediately after the Ghislenghien gas explosion reflected upon their experiences in their responses to a specially designed, self-reporting questionnaire that included open-ended questions. Firefighters reported more perceived threat and direct exposure to death than did EMS personnel.

Complex posttraumatic stress disorder (CPTSD) has been proposed as a diagnosis for capturing the diverse clusters of symptoms observed in survivors of prolonged trauma that are outside the current definition of PTSD. Introducing a new diagnosis requires a high standard of evidence, including a clear definition of the disorder, reliable and valid assessment measures, support for convergent and discriminant validity, and incremental validity with respect to implications for treatment planning and outcome.