Cognitive and behavioral reactions to stress among adults with PTSD: Implications for immunity and health.

Abstract

Adults who meet criteria for a posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis have poorer health on average, and their health problems occur earlier in life, compared with adults in the general population (Beckham et al, 1998;Butterfield, Fomeris, Feldman, & Beckham, 2000; Schnurr & Janikowski, 1999). Furthermore, one study showed that the relationship of PTSD to physical health was independent of age, depression, or other comorbid anxiety disorders (Zayfert, Dums, Ferguson, & Hegel, 2002). For some individuals, the health consequences of trauma may begin with traumatic childhood experiences. Two separate large-scale epidemiological studies in the United States and United Kingdom demonstrated linear relationships between the number of adverse childhood experiences (e.g, abuse, other potentially traumatic event) and cardiovascular risk factors evidenced as adults (Felitti et al, 1998; Surtees et al, 2003). Data from the U.S. National Comorbidity Study indicated childhood sexual abuse was associated 133

Psychological trauma and physical health: A psychoneuroimmunology approach to etiology of negative health effects and possible interventions.

“…Thus, even within a population with severe mood disorders, adverse childhood experiences contribute to worse physical and mental health. Studies of other types of trauma have showed similar patterns (Kibler et al, in press).…”

“…Depression not only increases inflammation. It also increases the incidence of health-compromising behavior (Kibler et al, in press). In a study of 254 patients with major mood disorders (Lu, Mueser, Rosenberg, & Jankowski, 2008), researchers found that exposure to adverse childhood experiences was related to a number of health compromising factors.…”

“…For more than a decade, researchers have explored the impact of traumatic events on physical health. Trauma survivors often have significant physical health problems that can linger for many years after the traumatic event has ended and are often above and beyond the effects of direct physical injury (Kendall-Tackett, 2007; Kibler, Joshi, & Hughes, in press). The question of trauma's impact and health is at the junction of mind-body medicine.…”