Evaluation of expressive writing for postpartum health: A randomized controlled trial

Pregnancy, birth and adjusting to a new baby is a potentially stressful time that can negatively affect the health of women. There is some evidence that expressive writing can have positive effects on psychological and physical health, particularly during stressful periods. The current study aimed to evaluate whether expressive writing would improve women’s postpartum health. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with three conditions: expressive writing (n=188), a control writing task (n=213), or normal care (n=163). Measures of psychological health, physical health and quality of life were measured at baseline (6-12 weeks postpartum), 1 month and 6 months later. Ratings of stress were taken before and after the expressive writing task. Intent-to-treat analyses showed no significant differences between women in the expressive writing, control writing and normal care groups on measures of physical health, anxiety, depression, mood or quality of life at 1 and 6 months. Uptake and adherence to the writing tasks was low. However, women in the expressive writing group rated their stress as significantly reduced after completing the task. Cost analysis suggest women who did expressive writing had the lowest costs in terms of healthcare service use and lowest cost per unit of improvement in quality of life. Results suggest expressive writing is not effective as a universal intervention for all women 6-12 weeks postpartum. Future research should examine expressive writing as a targeted intervention for women in high-risk groups, such as those with mild or moderate depression, and further examine cost-effectiveness

Examining the Link Between Domestic Violence Victimization and Loneliness in a Dutch Community Sample: A Comparison Between Victims and Nonvictims by Type D Personality

The current study investigated whether differences in loneliness scores between individuals with a distressed personality type (type D personality) and subjects without such a personality varied by domestic violence victimization. Participants (N = 625) were recruited by random sampling from the Municipal Basic Administration of the Dutch city of ‘s-Hertogenbosch and were invited to fill out a set of questionnaires on health status. For this study, only ratings for domestic violence victimization, type D personality, feelings of loneliness, and demographics were used. Statistical analyses yielded main effects on loneliness for both type D personality and history of domestic violence victimization. Above and beyond these main effects, their interaction was significantly associated with loneliness as well. However, this result seemed to apply to emotional loneliness in particular. Findings were discussed in light of previous research and study limitations

Trauma-focused treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder combined with CBT for severe substance use disorder: a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: This randomized controlled trial (RCT) investigated the effectiveness of a combined treatment for co-morbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and severe Substance Use Disorder (SUD). METHODS: Structured Writing Therapy for PTSD (SWT), an evidence-based traumafocused intervention, was added on to Treatment As Usual (TAU), consisting of an intensive cognitive behavioral inpatient or day group treatment for SUD. The outcomes of the combined treatment (TAU + SWT) were compared to TAU alone in a sample of 34 patients. RESULTS: Results showed a general reduction of SUD symptoms for both TAU + SWT and TAU. Treatment superiority of TAU + SWT was neither confirmed by interaction effects (time x condition) for SUD or PTSD symptoms, nor by a group difference for SUD diagnostic status at post-treatment. However, planned contrasts revealed that improvements for PTSD severity over time were only significant within the TAU + SWT group. In addition, within the TAU + SWT group the remission of PTSD diagnoses after treatment was significant, which was not the case for TAU. Finally, at post-treatment a trend was noticed for between group differences for the number of PTSD diagnoses favoring TAU + SWT above TAU. CONCLUSIONS: In sum, the current study provides preliminary evidence that adding a trauma-focused treatment on to standard SUD treatment may be beneficial