EMDR integrative group treatment for female adolescents with complex posttraumatic stress disorder who experienced sexual abuse

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Integrative Group Treatment Protocol (EMDR-IGTP), which was previously used in disaster and war related traumas, on depression and trauma scores in female adolescents with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. This is the first study in this field. For this purpose, 13 female adolescents underwent 3 sessions of Group EMDR protocol. The cases had history of sexual abuse and had been given standard medical treatment for at least 6 months. The Posttraumatic Stress Index and the Children Depression Inventory were administered to the patients before therapy sessions and then 1 month after the sessions were completed. The mean age of the patients was 16 (min: 14 max: 17). 84,6% (n: 11) of the cases had experienced more than one traumatic event before. The mean Child Depression Inventory scores were 19 (± 6.4) before therapy and 11,4 (± 5.5) at 1-month follow-up, Post-Traumatic Stress Index scores were 53.5 (± 7.5) before therapy, and 39.4 (± 8.6) at 1-month follow-up. There was a statistically significant difference in both depression and trauma scores before and after follow-up. Complicated PTSD is a psychiatric disorder that affects lives of individuals in many ways. Although standard psychotropic medication has a partial effect in reducing post-traumatic stress symptoms, this is insufficient. Group therapy has been used mostly in collective traumatic events; it has been shown to be effective in complex PTSD as well with this study. However, larger samples and controlled studies are needed.

Journal

Turkish

Mehmet Karadağ

Karadağ,  M. (i2020, October). EMDR integrative group treatment for female adolescents with complex posttraumatic stress disorder who experienced sexual abuse. Psikiyatride Güncel Yaklaşımlar, 12. Turkish