A prospective study of the onset of PTSD symptoms in the first month after trauma exposure.

Background: The course of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in the month after trauma exposure has not been determined adequately. Symptom group C (avoidance/numbing) has been identified retrospectively as a marker for PTSD, but prospective studies are needed to determine whether these symptoms can provide substantially earlier identification of those who will have PTSD 1 month after trauma exposure.

Methods: We evaluated 42 patients hospitalized for traumatic injuries over the first post-injury month to track development of posttraumatic symptoms.

Borderline personality features and harmful dysregulated behavior: the mediational effect of mindfulness.

Objectives: The current preliminary study investigated whether deficits in mindfulness (awareness, attentiveness, and acceptance of the present experience) may underlie the relationship of borderline personality disorder (BPD) features to self-injury and overall acts of harmful dysregulated behavior.

Method: Nonparametric bootstrapping procedures were used to examine theoretical relationships among variables in a psychiatric sample of adults (N = 70). Participants were asked to imagine themselves in distress-inducing situations and then write what they would actually do to decrease distress in such situations.

The role of mindfulness in borderline personality disorder features.

This study investigated whether deficits in mindfulness (attention, awareness, and acceptance of the present moment) underlie variability in borderline personality disorder (BPD) features and related impairments in interpersonal functioning, impulsivity, and emotion regulation. A path analytic approach was used to examine the relationships of trait mindfulness with BPD features, interpersonal effectiveness, impulsive and passive emotion-regulation, and neuroticism in a psychiatric sample of adults (N = 70). As hypothesized, mindfulness was associated inversely with BPD features and core areas of dysfunction, and these associations continued when controlling for neuroticism.