Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy PTSD

Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy PTSD
Student:
Professor:
Course title:
Date:
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy PTSD
It is normal, following a traumatic experience, for a person to feel disconnected, anxious, sad and frightened. However, if the distress does not fade and the individual feels stuck with a continuous sense of danger as well as hurting memories, then that person might in fact be suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PSTD could develop after a traumatic incident which threatens one’s safety or makes one to feel helpless (Dalgleish, 2010). Coping with traumatic events could be very difficult, but confronting one’s feelings and seeking professional assistance is usually the only way to properly treat PSTD. Many kids and adolescents worldwide experience events that are traumatizing. If exposure to trauma is not treated, it could lead to various mental health problems. Researchers have reported a connection between traumatization and increases in mood and anxiety disorders, but the most frequently reported symptoms of psychological distress are post-traumatic stress symptoms (Cohen, Mannarino & Iyengar, 2011).
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) is basically a conjoint parent and child psychotherapy approach for kids and teenagers who are undergoing significant behavioral and emotional difficulties pertaining to traumatic life events (Jensen et al., 2014). In essence, it is a components-based treatment model incorporating trauma-sensitive interventions with family, cognitive behavioral, as well as humanistic techniques and principles. Parents and kids learn new skills to help in processing feelings and thoughts relating to traumatic events in life; resolve and manage distressing behaviors, feelings, and thoughts that are related to traumatic events in life; and enhance growth, safety, family communication and parenting skills (Scheeringa et al., 2011).
TF-CBT treatment is generally designed to be a rather short-term treatment, characteristically lasting twelve to sixteen sessions. More than 80% of traumatized kids who get Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy experience considerable improvement following twelve to sixteen weeks of treatment (Dalgleish et al., 2014). Depending on the needs of the individual child and family, treatment might be offered for longer episodes. It is worth mentioning that Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy could be utilized as part of a larger treatment plan for kids who have complex difficulties. For young people and kids who have PSTD, TF-CBT is usually recommended.
Research question
What is the efficacy of Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in the treatment of young people with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder?
This research paper will present research that supports the effectiveness of TF-CBT in the treatment of young persons who have posttraumatic stress disorder. The findings of various empirical research studies performed in the past few years on the subject matter are analyzed exhaustively and compared. The empirical studies chosen focus on the use of TF-CBT in treating PTSD in young persons who are aged from 3 years to 17 years in the United States, Africa, Europe and Asia. Dalgleish et al. (2014) reported that after life-threatening or horrific events, an estimated 10-15 percent of young kids usually develop PSTD. PSTD symptoms are distressing – anger outbursts, flashbacks, nightmares in addition to disturbed play. Such symptoms result in significant disruption to the functioning of a child and, if not treated, could continue for a number of years. Up till now, there is no recognized empirically-validated treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder in young kids.
There is compelling evidence base for TF-CBT in the treatment of PSTD. Even so, few controlled trials have been carried out on very young kids and are limited mainly to victims of sexual abuse. In their study, Scheeringa et al. (2011) examined the effectiveness and feasibility of TF-CBT for treating PTSD in kids aged 3-6 years who had been exposed to various kinds of traumas. In selecting the participants, three inclusion criteria were utilized: first, the subject has undergone a life-threatening traumatic event; secondly, the subject was aged between 36 months to 83 months at the time of the latest trauma; and thirdly, the subject had at least 4 symptoms of PSTD (Scheeringa et al., 2011).
The findings of their randomized design revealed that the intervention group improved considerably more on PSTD symptoms, although not on oppositional defiant, separation anxiety, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders, or depression. There were large effect sizes for PSTD, oppositional defiant, separation anxiety and depression although not attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (Scheeringa et al., 2011). At 6-month follow-up, the effect size for PSTD increased, whereas for the comorbid disorders it remained somewhat constant. Scheeringa et al. (2011) concluded that Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is actually feasible and more effectual compared to a wait list condition for symptoms of PSTD, and the effect is long-lasting. Participants in the wait list group did not show considerable mean reduction in PSTD symptoms, and this brings up an ethical concern that future usage of wait list control groups might be needless (Scheeringa et al., 2011).
In another study, O’Callaghan et al. (2013) performed a randomized controlled trial of TF-CBT for war-affected, sexually abused girls. The aim of their study was basically to evaluate the efficacy of this form of treatment provided by non-clinical facilitators in decreasing post-traumatic stress, anxiety and depression and behavior problems, and increasing prosocial behavior in a grouping that comprised sexually exploited, war-affected girls in a randomized, parallel-design, single-blind, controlled trial. A total of 52 girls aged from 12 years to 17 years who had been exposed to inappropriate sexual touch as well as rape in the African country of Democratic Republic of Congo were screened for prosocial behavior, conduct...