Prior trauma‐related experiences predict the development of posttraumatic stress disorder after a new traumatic event

Abstract

Background: Many reports have documented the relationship between previous traumatic experiences, including childhood trauma, and the development of later life psychopathology, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Identification of individuals at greatest risk for the development of PTSD could lead to preventative interventions. The present study examined the developmental course of PTSD after trauma exposure, using histories of previous traumatic experiences and the severity of the reaction to the trauma as predictors. Methods: Participants (N = 713) were recruited from Emergency Departments in Miami and Atlanta immediately following a traumatic experience. Histories of previous traumatic experiences and the immediate reaction to the new trauma were examined at baseline. Follow-up assessments of PTSD severity were conducted at 1, 3, and 6 months. Results: Histories of child abuse and pre-existing trauma symptoms predicted the immediate response to stress (R 2 = .21, p < .001) and the initial trauma reaction (p < .005).) A mixed-model repeated-measures analysis of variance found that immediate stress response and a history of prior trauma (p < .001) significantly predicted the course of PTSD symptoms. Area under the curve (AUC) analyses suggested that the presence of PTSD at each successive assessment was predicted most substantially by the severity of PTSD at the immediately prior follow-up assessment (AUC > 0.86). Conclusions: The current findings suggest that previous traumatic experiences lead to a greater immediate reaction to trauma and combine to predict the development of PTSD, the maintenance of which is not moderated by these earlier experiences. The identification of people likely to develop PTSD may be aided by the assessment of prior experiences and immediate reactions.

The more mindfulness practice, the more post-trauma stress symptoms? Trait mindfulness and PTSS during the COVID-19 pandemic

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“…According to the Developmental Psychopathology framework [ 35 ], psychopathological difficulties in parents and children are the result of the dynamic interplay between individual and relational protective and risk factors, from individual vulnerabilities to parents’ strengths. Among individual vulnerabilities, some studies have shown that having experienced previous trauma may lead the individual to a greater vulnerability to the effects of subsequent traumatic experiences, with a higher risk of developing post-traumatic stress symptoms [ 36 , 37 , 38 ]. The stress sensitization model posited that an individual who has higher levels of prior trauma exposure might manifest higher sensitivity and lower tolerance to stress when exposed to later stressful life events [ 33 , 39 ].…”

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“…Individuals become more sensitive to perturbations in their environment, have excessive intrusive thoughts and musings which may trigger a depressive episode. We originally proposed that anxiety and trauma disorders can be thought of increased hyperexcitability in the amygdala and its circuits ( Rosen and Schulkin, 1998 ) and many studies support this idea ( Morgan et al, 1995 ; Lähdepuro et al, 2019 ; Gould et al, 2021 ).…”