The effects of daily stressors on physical health in women with and without a childhood history of sexual abuse

Thakkar, Reena R.; McCanne, Thomas R.

doi:10.1016/s0145-2134(99)00129-5

Cited by 48 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Increased behavioral stress reactivity has also been identified among adults who were maltreated as children. For example, individuals with a history of childhood sexual abuse display stronger emotional responses to everyday stressors than those never abused or sexually abused after age 18 (Thakkar and McCanne, 2000). These complex biological and interpersonal systems are influenced by various factors, including the time in development that the adverse events occur, nature of the individual’s social support systems, and related resilience and coping mechanisms.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Childhood maltreatment, 9/11 exposure, and latent dimensions of psychopathology: A test of stress sensitization

Meyers

Lowe

Eaton

et al. 2015

Journal of Psychiatric Research

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On September 11, 2001, a terrorist attack occurred in the U.S. (9/11). Research on 9/11 and psychiatric outcomes has focused on individual disorders rather than the broader internalizing (INT) and externalizing (EXT) domains of psychopathology, leaving unknown whether direct and indirect 9/11 exposure differentially impacted these domains rather than individual disorders. Further, whether such effects were exacerbated by earlier childhood maltreatment (i.e. stress sensitization) is unknown. 18,713 participants from a U.S. national sample with no history of psychiatric disorders prior to 9/11 were assessed using a structured in-person interview. Structural equation modeling conducted in a sample who endorsed no psychiatric history prior to 9/11, indicated that indirect exposure to 9/11 (i.e. media, friends/family) was related to both EXT (alcohol, nicotine, and cannabis dependence, and antisocial personality disorder) and INT (major depression, generalized anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)) dimensions of psychopathology (EXT: β = 0.10, p < 0.001; INT: β = 0.11, p < 0.001) whereas direct exposure was associated with the INT dimension only (β = 0.11, p < 0.001). For individuals who had experienced childhood maltreatment, the risk for EXT and INT dimensions associated with 9/11 was exacerbated (Interactions: β = 0.06, p < 0.01; β = 0.07, p < 0.001, respectively). These findings indicate that 9/11 impacted latent liability to broad domains of psychopathology in the US general population rather than specific disorders with the exception of PTSD, which had independent effects beyond INT (as indicated by a significant (p < 0.05) improvement in modification indices). Findings also indicated that childhood maltreatment increases the risk associated with adult trauma exposure, providing further evidence for the concept of stress sensitization.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Childhood maltreatment, 9/11 exposure, and latent dimensions of psychopathology: A test of stress sensitization

Meyers

Lowe

Eaton

et al. 2015

Journal of Psychiatric Research

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“…This pathway includes conditions such as hyper-vigilance, somatization, anxiety, sleeping difficulties and hostility, and is put forward by several researchers in relation to the experience of physical symptoms and poor self-reported health [15,47-49,51,52]. In addition, some studies suggest that current life stressors increase the rate of health problems more for abused individuals than for those without a history of abuse [53,54]. Pregnancy and the anticipation of childbirth itself have been recognized as possible stressors for most pregnant women, while severe fear of childbirth has been associated with a history of sexual abuse [55-57].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual violence and pregnancy-related physical symptoms

Lukasse

Henriksen

Vangen

et al. 2012

BMC Pregnancy Childbirth

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BackgroundFew studies have investigated the impact of sexual violence on health during pregnancy. We examined the association between sexual violence and the reporting of physical symptoms during pregnancy.MethodsA population-based national cohort study conducted by The Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort study (MoBa) collected data from pregnant women through postal questionnaires at 17 and 32 weeks gestation. Three levels of sexual violence were measured: 1) mild (pressured into sexual relations), 2) moderate (forced with violence into sexual relation) and 3) severe (rape). Differences between women reporting and not reporting sexual violence were assessed using Pearson’s X2 test and multiple logistic regression analyses.ResultsOf 78 660 women, 12.0% (9 444) reported mild, 2.8% (2 219) moderate and 3.6% (2 805) severe sexual violence. Sexual violence was significantly associated with increased reporting of pregnancy-related physical symptoms, both measured in number of symptoms and duration/degree of suffering. Compared to women not reporting sexual violence, the probability of suffering from ≥8 pregnancy-related symptoms estimated by Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) was 1.49 (1.41–1.58) for mild sexual violence, 1.66(1.50–1.84) for moderate and 1.78 (1.62–1.95) for severe. Severe sexual violence both previously and recently had the strongest association with suffering from ≥8 pregnancy-related symptoms, AOR 6.70 (2.34–19.14).ConclusionA history of sexual violence is associated with increased reporting of pregnancy-related physical symptoms. Clinicians should consider the possible role of a history of sexual violence when treating women who suffer extensively from pregnancy-related symptoms.

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“…Similarly, although it is generally difficult to determine whether a visible bruise is the result of an accidental injury or deliberate physical abuse, young children may assume that the injuries suffered have caused permanent damage and the scars that they bear are obvious signs of abuse to others. Given that many children endure abuse during a stage in development characterized by concrete thinking, it is not surprising that many survivors of abuse grow up experiencing and reporting very high rates of vague, nonspecific physical complaints that may, in fact, reflect ongoing worries concerning their physical well-being (Thakkar & McCanne, 2000).…”

Section: Perceiving the Self As Damagedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding and Treating Feelings of Shame in Children Who Have Experienced Maltreatment

Deblinger¹,

Runyon²

2005

Child Maltreat

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The effects of daily stressors on physical health in women with and without a childhood history of sexual abuse

Cited by 48 publications

References 22 publications

Childhood maltreatment, 9/11 exposure, and latent dimensions of psychopathology: A test of stress sensitization

Childhood maltreatment, 9/11 exposure, and latent dimensions of psychopathology: A test of stress sensitization

Sexual violence and pregnancy-related physical symptoms

Understanding and Treating Feelings of Shame in Children Who Have Experienced Maltreatment

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