Recent studies have found associations between prolonged stress response and white matter (WM) microstructure in individuals with schizophrenia, as well as correlations between early life trauma and WM integrity in individuals with schizophrenia and non-psychiatric controls; however, psychosocial correlates of WM dysfunction have not yet been adequately explored in individuals experiencing attenuated psychotic symptoms (APS, subthreshold versions of positive psychotic symptoms). This study examines WM microstructure using traditional and free-water corrected diffusion metrics within a community sample of 66 16 to 30-year-olds experiencing a range of APS to examine the contribution of perceived stress and childhood trauma to the relationship between APS and WM abnormalities, as well as examine the moderating influence of sex assigned at birth (herein referred to as sex) to these relationships. We found that overall symptom severity on the Structured Interview for Psychosis-risk Syndromes (SIPS) was associated with higher extracellular free-water (FW) across the whole brain, lower free-water corrected fractional anisotropy values (FAT), and higher free-water corrected radial diffusivity (RDT). Further, childhood trauma significantly moderated the relationship between SIPS scores and both FAT and RDT, controlling for biological sex at birth, such that in the presence of APS, childhood trauma was associated with higher FAT and lower RDT, and in lower APS the opposite pattern was seen, with childhood trauma associated with lower FAT and lower RDT. After stratifying for sex, childhood trauma moderated the SIPS – FAT and RDT relationships in males similar to findings in the whole sample, though this relationship was not present in females. Perceived stress was not a significant moderator in the total sample, though was a significant moderator of the APS – FA relationship in males only. This study represents an important step toward identifying mechanisms for WM dysfunction within individuals with psychosis spectrum disorders, as well as identifying important targets for interventions. / Psychology

Early life stress has been found to be a strong predictor of depression severity, with genetic risk factors such as the serotonin transporter promotor (5-HTTLPR) and brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) polymorphisms moderating depression development. Our investigation aims to extend these findings to examine the impact of depression severity, genetic risk factors, and childhood maltreatment on neuronal connectivity changes using tract based spatial statistics (TBSS) and probabilistic tractography. Fifty-five medication-free patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) [x̅ age: 36.4, M/F: 22/33] and 18 controls [x̅ age: 33.2, M/F: 8/10] underwent diffusion tensor imaging scanning, genotyping and completed the Childhood Trauma Questionairre. Corrected TBSS findings revealed trends toward significantly reduced FA in the right anterior internal capsule [p=0.051], fornix [p=0.085] and right anterior corona radiata [p=0.084] in the MDD group. Probabilistic tractography analysis examined fractional anisotropy (FA) in the cingulum bundle, uncinate fasciculus and superior longitudinal fasciculus. Individuals scoring high in depression severity and who experienced severe childhood physical neglect (PN) and emotional neglect (EN) had higher FA in the uncinate [PN: p=0.003, EN: p=0.029] and superior longitudinal fasciculus [PN: p=0.0748], with BDNF and 5-HTTLPR moderating these associations. BDNF polymorphisms also exhibited a stronger impact on uncinate FA in individuals with high depression severity, with val-BDNF exhibiting higher FA than met carriers [p=0.021]. In conclusion, MDD patients exhibit widespread decreases in FA across many neural regions. Furthermore, the impact that depression severity has on FA is considerably influenced by early life neglect. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

This article discusses risk factors for adults who have suffered early childhood trauma, specifically focusing on emotional abuse, and discusses the negative long-term consequences from childhood trauma such as depression, anxiety, stress, and neuroticism personality. This research study predicts that those who report emotional abuse will have higher sores for depression, anxiety, stress, and neuroticism personality compared to those who reported only physical, only sexual, or combined physical and sexual abuse. Using the NEO Five-Factor Inventory, Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale, and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, 748 college students participated in an on-line survey at a Southeastern university. As predicted, this study found those who reported emotional abuse had higher scores for depression, anxiety, stress, and neuroticism personality compared to those who reported only physical, only sexual, or combined physical and sexual abuse. Studies show emotional abuse may be the most damaging form of maltreatment causing adverse developmental consequences equivalent to, or more severe than, those of other forms of abuse (Hart et al. 1996). Therefore, this article discusses the need for public awareness campaigns to raise public and community awareness and evidenced based treatments that help with the psychological consequences resulting from emotional abuse.

Experiences of trauma and maltreatment are frequent predictors of poor physical and mental health outcomes in adulthood. Existing literature also suggests an impact of developmental adversity on criminality and aggressive behavior, though little research exists describing the effects of cumulative adversity in forensic mental health samples. In the current study of 381 forensic mental health inpatients, rates of trauma, neglect, and parental substance abuse are reported in comparison with community norms. Cumulative adversity and the occurrence of foster care placement are examined via linear and logistic regression analyses in relation to age at first arrest, first psychiatric hospitalization, and onset of aggression, as well as history of suicide attempts and non-suicidal self-injury. Results revealed that experiences of developmental adversity were more common among participants than have been reported in community samples using the ACE survey, and that there were differential effects of gender on the prevalence of traumas experienced. Cumulative adversity scores were significantly associated with all outcomes, though the addition of foster care placement to the model significantly contributed to understanding outcomes, and in some cases, removed the effect of cumulative adversity. Implications and direction for future study are discussed.

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No description available.

This study examined the relationships between childhood family of origin (FOO) adversities, coming to terms with them, and adult intimate relationship satisfaction for Native American individuals. The sample consisted of 186 Native American individuals in committed relationships who responded to the RELATionship Evaluation (RELATE). Among the items in the questionnaire were measures of childhood FOO adversity, whether respondents had come to terms with FOO problems, relationship quality and depression. Results from structural equation modeling indicated that coming to terms buffered the negative effects of childhood family of origin adversities on depression and relationship quality. Results suggest that coming to terms may help Native American individuals deal with FOO adversity and improve intimate relationship quality. Coming to terms with childhood FOO adversity should be considered in the treatment of Native American individuals in intimate relationships. Clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed.

The ongoing Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) crisis has affected thousands of families throughout the United States and Canada, resulting in probable trauma to children in the families and communities for generations. Although awareness of the crisis has been growing in recent years through avenues such as social media (#MMIW, etc.), little action has been taken to stem the crisis and its effects. The effects of the crisis on the children left behind is a compelling question that is not often addressed in the media, however. A systematic review of the scientific literature from the United States and Canada was conducted with the addition of gray literature due to limited results found in the scientific literature. The gray literature examined included relevant websites of relevant organizations and news articles. Results of the study demonstrated a dearth of data related to children and MMIW, with no research studies found. The articles analyzed were primarily focused on recommendations and did not specifically address the effects of MMIW on children. Gray literature findings included mention of some policy actions on state and national levels, including many calls to action that have not yet been addressed or implemented. The lack of data regarding the support needs of children affected by MMIW may be one of the reasons actions have been largely absent. One of the possible courses of action may be to better support Native/Indigenous scholars who have insider status. The MMIW crises is deeply personal and perhaps overwhelming to research, indicating support needs for Native/Indigenous scholars in addition to funding.

Clinical wisdom suggests that adults with histories of childhood trauma will have difficulty engaging in psychotherapy. I examined the relationship between early childhood trauma and treatment response in the form of rate of symptom decline among a group of 202 adults recruited into the longitudinal Austen Riggs Center Follow-Along Study. Participants were recruited at admission to the hospital and provided extensive demographic and clinical data at baseline, including retrospective recall of childhood traumatic experiences using the Traumatic Antecedents Interview (TAI) and narrative responses to the Relationship Anecdote Paradigm (RAP) used to generate ratings on the Social Cognition and Object Relations Scale (SCORS). Participant symptoms were assessed at baseline and again every six to eight months for up to four years using the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R). Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) was used to perform growth curve modeling of the symptom change data, which demonstrated an overall linear rate of decline and significant unexplained variability. The hypothesis that degree of childhood trauma would predict rates of symptom change failed to receive support, as did other related hypotheses. Only participant age predicted differences in rates of symptom decline, with younger participants' symptoms declining more rapidly than those of older participants. The findings indicate the following: (1) symptom severity tends to decline linearly after hospital admission, (2) individual rates of symptom change vary considerably, and (3) rates of symptom decline may slow as people age. Implications for clinical research and practice are discussed.

Bakgrund: Personer som drabbats av psykiska trauman har högre risk att drabbas av psykisk ohälsa till följd av detta. En traumatisk händelse kan innefatta psykisk, fysisk och sexuell misshandel, hot om våld, mobbning och andra stressfulla händelser. Barn som drabbas av trauma har större risk att drabbas av långvariga besvär då de genomgår en utveckling i livet. Sjuksköterskan har en viktig roll i mötet med personer som drabbats av psykisk ohälsa genom att lyfta upp deras egna resurser samt främja återhämtning. Syfte: Syftet med denna litteraturöversikt var att beskriva hur psykiskt trauma i barndomen påverkar psykisk ohälsa i vuxen ålder. Metod: Den strukturerade litteraturöversikten baserades på 13 vetenskapliga artiklar, två artiklar med kvalitativ design och elva med kvantitativ design. Artikelsökningen utfördes i databaserna CINAHL, PsycINFO och Web of Science. De utvalda artiklarna har analyserats enligt Fribergs femstegsmodell. Resultat: Litteraturöversiktens resultat baserades på två huvudkategorier: Konsekvenser av psykiska trauman i barndomen och Faktorer som ökar risken för psykisk ohälsa samtderas sex tillhörande underkategorier. Resultatet visade att psykiskt trauma i barndomen gav stora negativa konsekvenser i vuxen ålder. Upprepande traumatiska händelser, vilket kön den drabbade personen har och personens ålder spelar stor roll i huruvida denne utvecklar psykisk ohälsa till följd av barndomstrauman. Slutsats: Litteraturöversikten belyser de negativa psykiska konsekvenser en person drabbas av i vuxen ålder till följd av ett trauma i barndomen. Barn är en sårbar grupp och har större risk att utveckla psykisk ohälsa. Det finns andra orsaker än traumatiska händelser i barndomen till att en person utvecklar psykisk ohälsa. Däremot är det viktigt att den utsatta personen får rätt stöd, där sjuksköterskan har en betydande roll i mötet med personen för att minska lidande och främja återhämtning. Således är det viktigt att tidigt identifiera ett utsatt barn för att minska risken för psykisk ohälsa i vuxen ålder. / Background: Persons who have suffered mental trauma could fall victim to mental illness from this. A traumatic experience could mean mental, physical and sexual abuse, threats of violence, bullying or other stressful events. Children who suffer from trauma have a higher risk of suffering from long-term issues, due to the fact that they are undergoing development in life. The registered nurse plays an important roll in the meeting with persons that have been affected by mental illness, by highlighting their own esources and also by encouraging recovery. Aim: The aim of the literature review was to describe the correlation between childhood trauma and mental illness in adulthood. Method: The structured literature review was based on 13 scientific articles, two articles with qualitative design and eleven with quantitative design. The article search was done in the databases CINAHL, PsycINFO and Web of Science. The chosen articles have been analysed according to Friberg’s five step model. Results: The results of the literature review was based on two main categories: Consequences of mental trauma in childhood and Factors which increase the risk for mental illness with their six belonging sub categories. The result concluded that mental trauma in childhood had major negative consequences in adulthood. Repetitive traumatic events, what gender the affected person has and the persons age plays a major role in whether the person develops mental illness following childhood trauma. Conclusions: The literature review highligts the negative psychological consequenses a person suffers in adulthood following childhood trauma. Children are a vulnerable group and have a greater risk of developing mental illness. There are other reasons than childhood trauma for a person to develop mental illness. However, it is important that the vulnerable person recieves support, where a registered nurse has a significant role in the meeting with the person, to reduce suffering and promote recovery. Thus, it is important to identify a vulnerable child early to reduce the risk of mental illness in adulthood.