A Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention (Shift) to Manage Problem Anger After Trauma: Co-Design and Development Study.

Background: Problem anger is common after experiencing trauma and is under-recognized relative to other posttraumatic mental health issues. Previous research has shown that digital mental health tools have significant potential to support individuals with problem anger after trauma.

Objective: The objective of this study was to describe the co-design and development of a just-in-time adaptive intervention (JITAI) targeting problem anger in individuals who have experienced trauma.

Predicting high anger intensity using ecological momentary assessment and wearable-derived physiological data in a trauma-affected sample.

Digital technologies offer tremendous potential to predict dysregulated mood and behavior within an individual's environment, and in doing so can support the development of new digital health interventions. However, no prediction models have been built in trauma-exposed populations that leverage real-world data. This project aimed to determine if wearable-derived physiological data can predict anger intensity in trauma-exposed adults.

A mixed-methods investigation of a digital mental health tool to manage posttrauma anger.

Problematic anger affects up to 30% of individuals who have experienced trauma. Digital mental health approaches, such as ecological momentary assessment (EMA) delivered via smartphone and wearable devices (i.e.

A scoping review of psychosocial interventions delivered by non-mental health workers following disaster events.

Individuals exposed to disasters are at high risk of developing mental health conditions, yet the availability of mental health practitioners is often limited. The aim of this scoping review was to examine the quality of the evidence for psychosocial interventions that can be delivered by non-mental health workers in the context of disasters. Searches were performed in PsycInfo, EMBASE, Family & Society Studies Worldwide, CINAHL, Global Health, PubMed, and SCOPUS, from inception through to November 2024, to identify studies of relevance.

A pilot study of a brief and scalable psychosocial intervention for children and adolescents following disasters.

Objectives: Following disaster exposure, a significant proportion of children/adolescents will develop levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) that do not meet diagnostic threshold for PTSD, but which cause ongoing distress. This paper describes the development and pilot testing of a brief, scalable, psychosocial intervention. SOLAR-Kids/Teens has been designed to be delivered by non-mental health professionals ('coaches') to children/adolescents experiencing moderate levels of PTSS following disasters.

Mental health treatment for first responders: An assessment of mental health provider needs.

First responders experience mental health conditions at a higher rate than the general population. To improve treatment and enhance quality of care, it is important to understand the needs of those who provide mental health treatment to this population. The purpose of this study was to explore the needs of mental health providers with experience working with first responders to better understand how first responders differ from community patients, and what training and supports providers need to enhance treatment.

Alexithymia and treatment response for prolonged exposure therapy: An evaluation of outcomes and mechanisms.

Alexithymia is the inability to identify and recognize emotions. The present study examined the impact of alexithymia on prolonged exposure (PE) therapy. Participants ( 68) with PTSD underwent 10 PE sessions.

Posttraumatic Stress and Alexithymia: Symptom Associations.

There is a demonstrated association between alexithymia and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, work has largely focused on male-dominant, high-risk occupation populations. We aimed to explore the relationship between posttraumatic stress (PTS) and alexithymia among 100 trauma-exposed female university students.

Understanding the temporal dynamics of problem anger using sequence analysis.

Problem anger is a common, and potentially destructive mental health issue in trauma-affected populations, affecting up to 30% of veteran and military populations. Problem anger is associated with a range of psychosocial and functional difficulties and elevated risk of harm to self and others. Increasingly, ecological momentary assessment (EMA) is being used to understand the microlevel dynamics of emotions, and this information is valuable to inform treatment approaches.

Ambulatory assessment to predict problem anger in trauma-affected adults: Study protocol.

Background: Problem anger is common after experiencing a traumatic event. Current evidence-driven treatment options are limited, and problem anger negatively affects an individual's capacity to engage with traditional psychological treatments. Smartphone interventions hold significant potential in mental health because of their ability to deliver low-intensity, precision support for individuals at the time and place they need it most.

Emotion response disconcordance among trauma-exposed adults: the impact of alexithymia.

Background: Emotion processing deficits have been identified as a critical transdiagnostic factor that facilitates distress after trauma exposure. Limited skills in identifying and labelling emotional states (i.e.

A predictive coding account of value-based learning in PTSD: Implications for precision treatments.

While there are a number of recommended first-line interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), treatment efficacy has been less than ideal. Generally, PTSD treatment models explain symptom manifestation via associative learning, treating the individual as a passive organism - acted upon - rather than self as agent. At their core, predictive coding (PC) models introduce the fundamental role of self-conceptualisation and hierarchical processing of one's sensory context in safety learning.

Attention-control training as an early intervention for veterans leaving the military: A pilot randomized controlled trial.

Transitioning out of the military can be a time of change and challenge. Research indicates that altered threat monitoring in military populations may contribute to the development of psychopathology in veterans, and interventions that adjust threat monitoring in personnel leaving the military may be beneficial. Australian Defence Force personnel (N = 59) transitioning from the military were randomized to receive four weekly sessions of either attention-control training or a placebo attention training.

Understanding the mental health impacts of COVID-19 through a trauma lens.

This special issue of the (EJPT) presents the first studies published by EJPT on COVID-19. We present 26 qualitative and quantitative studies assessing the prevalence of trauma-related symptoms and psychopathology within specific vulnerable populations such as health-care workers, students, children, and managers, or more broadly at a country level with a diverse set of outcomes including post-traumatic stress, moral injury, grief and post-traumatic growth. Intervention studies focus on whether telehealth delivery of mental health therapy in the pandemic environment was useful and effective.

Cross-lagged analyses of anger and PTSD symptoms among veterans in treatment.

Objective: Anger is a salient feature of posttraumatic mental health which is linked to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and may have implications for treatment. However, the nature of associations involving anger and PTSD remains unclear. The aim of the present study was to examine bidirectional influences involving anger and International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-11 PTSD symptom clusters over time among treatment-seeking veterans.

Prevalence and treatment implications of ICD-11 complex PTSD in Australian treatment-seeking current and ex-serving military members.

: Despite growing support for the distinction between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD (CPTSD) as separate diagnoses within the ICD-11 psychiatric taxonomy, the prevalence and treatment implications of CPTSD among current and ex-serving military members have not been established. : The study aims were to a) establish the prevalence of provisional ICD-11 CPTSD diagnosis relative to PTSD in an Australian sample of treatment-seeking current and ex-serving military members, and b) examine the implications of CPTSD diagnosis for intake profile and treatment response. : The study analysed data collected routinely from Australian-accredited treatment programmes for military-related PTSD.

Rapid Design and Delivery of an Experience-Based Co-designed Mobile App to Support the Mental Health Needs of Health Care Workers Affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic: Impact Evaluation Protocol.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of health care workers' mental health and well-being for the successful function of the health care system. Few targeted digital tools exist to support the mental health of hospital-based health care workers, and none of them appear to have been led and co-designed by health care workers.

Objective: RMHive is being led and developed by health care workers using experience-based co-design (EBCD) processes as a mobile app to support the mental health challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic to health care workers.

A Pilot Study of the Efficacy of the Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders in Treating Posttraumatic Psychopathology: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

The Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders (UP) is an intervention that targets common mechanisms that maintain symptoms across multiple disorders. The UP has been shown to be effective across many disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder, major depressive episode (MDE), and panic disorder, that commonly codevelop following trauma exposure. The present study represented the first randomized controlled trial of the UP in the treatment of trauma-related psychopathology, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety symptoms.

Strategies for Delivering Mental Health Services in Response to Global Climate Change: A Narrative Review.

This narrative review examined strategies for preparedness and response to mental health impacts of three forms of climate change from a services perspective: (1) acute and extreme weather events such as hurricanes, floods, and wildfires, (2) sub-acute or long-term events such as droughts and heatwaves; and (3) the prospect of long-term and permanent changes, including higher temperatures, rising sea levels, and an uninhabitable physical environment. Strategies for acute events included development and implementation of programs and practices for monitoring and treating mental health problems and strengthening individual and community resilience, training of community health workers to deliver services, and conducting inventories of available resources and assessments of at-risk populations. Additional strategies for sub-acute changes included advocacy for mitigation policies and programs and adaptation of guidelines and interventions to address the secondary impacts of sub-acute events, such as threats to livelihood, health and well-being, population displacement, environmental degradation, and civil conflict.

Efficacy of Psychoactive Drugs for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review of MDMA, Ketamine, LSD and Psilocybin.

The aim of this systematic review was to examine the efficacy of MDMA, ketamine, LSD, and psilocybin for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A search of four databases for English language, peer-reviewed literature published from inception to 18th October 2019 yielded 2,959 records, 34 of which were screened on full-text. Observational studies and RCTs which tested the efficacy of MDMA, ketamine, LSD, or psilocybin for reducing PTSD symptoms in adults, and reported changes to PTSD diagnosis or symptomatology, were included.

An Open Label Pilot Study of a Brief Psychosocial Intervention for Disaster and Trauma Survivors.

Background: In the aftermath of disaster, a large proportion of people will develop psychosocial difficulties that impair recovery, but for which presentations do not meet threshold criteria for disorder. Although these adjustment problems can cause high distress and impairment, and often have a trajectory towards mental health disorder, few evidence-based interventions are available to facilitate recovery.

Objective: This paper describes the development and pilot testing of an internationally developed, brief, and scalable psychosocial intervention that targets distress and poor adjustment following disaster and trauma.