ARQ National Psychotrauma Centre

Background

The mental health burden among refugees in high-income countries (HICs) is high, whereas access to mental healthcare can be limited.

Objective

To examine the effectiveness of a peer-provided psychological intervention (Problem Management Plus; PM+) in reducing symptoms of common mental disorders (CMDs) among Syrian refugees in the Netherlands.

Methods

Objectives

There is growing evidence that parental trauma is associated with psychosocial disorders, externalizing and internalizing problems, and higher sensitivity to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children. Recent research findings suggest multidimensional relational, psychological, and neurobiological interrelated pathways of intergenerational influence. Moreover, the intergenerational effects of parental trauma need to be understood within a broader systemic context, as a part of family adaptation.

2022 was a year of crises, not just one but multiple intersecting crises that caused traumatic stress in billions of people worldwide. COVID-19 is still not over. New wars have started, and the climate change impact is bigger than ever. Will the Anthropocene be an era of continued crises? This past year the European Journal of Psychotraumatology (EJPT) has again tried to contribute to how to prevent or treat the consequences of these major crises as well as other events and we will continue to do so the year to come.

Background: Psychological resilience is an important factor in coping with Potentially Traumatic Events (PTEs) and might mitigate the development of trauma-related disorders. Due to the high risk of natural disasters, criminal activity, and transportation accidents among the Indonesian population, it is critical to assess psychological resilience as a pro-tective factor. This study aimed to validate the Resilience Evaluation Scale (RES) in Indonesian undergraduate students.

Although the cerebellum contributes to higher-order cognitive and emotional functions relevant to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), prior research on cerebellar volume in PTSD is scant, particularly when considering subregions that differentially map on to motor, cognitive, and affective functions.

Deaths of relatives and peers in potentially traumatizing circumstances may lead to symptoms of prolonged grief (PG, e.g.,yearning, preoccupation) and posttraumatic stress (PTS, e.g., re-experiencing, hypervigilance). There is limited knowledge about how symptoms of PG and PTS co-occur following such events. The current study aimed to identify patterns of DSM-5-TR defined PG symptomatology and PTS in a sample of 213 youngsters, involved in a school bus accident killing seven peers 2 months earlier.

Few studies have examined treatments for complicated grief—a debilitating condition that can develop after the loss of a loved one. This study compared the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy with a nonspecific treatment with supportive counseling (SC).

Racial discrimination (RD) is unfair treatment of individuals based on race or ethnicity. It is a pervasive and increasing phenomenon in the lives of many individuals with deleterious effects on mental health. Research implicates RD in diminished well-being, lower life satisfaction and self-esteem, and mental health disorders. Furthermore, there have been reports that minorities and marginalized groups exposed to RD are at a higher risk of suicide.

Background: The configuration of having separate mental health services by age, namely child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) and adult mental health services (AMHS), might be a barrier to continuity of care that adversely affects young people’s mental health. However, no studies have investigated whether discontinuity of care in the transition period affects mental health.