Adaptive Disclosure: An Open Trial of a Novel Exposure-Based Intervention for Service Members With Combat-Related Psychological Stress Injuries

• Published in: Behavior therapy Vol. 43; no. 2; pp. 407 - 415
• Main Authors: Gray, Matt J, Schorr, Yonit, Nash, William, Lebowitz, Leslie, Amidon, Amy, Lansing, Amy, Maglione, Melissa, Lang, Ariel J, Litz, Brett T
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2012; Elsevier; Academic Press
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Behavior therapy. Cognitive therapy; Biological and medical sciences; Combat; Combat Disorders - psychology; Combat Disorders - therapy; Disclosure; Effectiveness studies; Fear & phobias; Female; Humans; Implosive Therapy - methods; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Military personnel; Military Personnel - psychology; Moral aspects; moral injury; Patient Satisfaction; Phenomenology; Post traumatic stress disorder; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; psychotherapy; PTSD; Servicemen; Stress; Stress, Psychological - psychology; Stress, Psychological - therapy; Surveys and Questionnaires; trauma; Treatment Outcome; Treatments; trauma; PTSD; psychotherapy; moral injury; Combat; Human; Treatment; Self disclosure; Exposure; Behavior therapy; Veteran; Stress
• ISSN: 0005-7894; 1878-1888
• DOI: 10.1016/j.beth.2011.09.001

Abstract We evaluated the preliminary effectiveness of a novel intervention that was developed to address combat stress injuries in active-duty military personnel. Adaptive disclosure (AD) is relatively brief to accommodate the busy schedules of active-duty service members while training for future deployments. Further, AD takes into account unique aspects of the phenomenology of military service in war in order to address difficulties such as moral injury and traumatic loss that may not receive adequate and explicit attention by conventional treatments that primarily address fear-inducing life-threatening experiences and sequelae. In this program development and evaluation open trial, 44 marines received AD while in garrison. It was well tolerated and, despite the brief treatment duration, promoted significant reductions in PTSD, depression, negative posttraumatic appraisals, and was also associated with increases in posttraumatic growth.