Gender Differences in the Socioecological Contexts of Veterans Seeking Mental Health Services Following Military Sexual Trauma.

Military sexual trauma (MST) refers to sexual assault or harassment experienced during military service. Given the high prevalence of MST and negative mental and physical health outcomes that result from MST, Veterans Health Administration has identified a national priority for screening and treatment. An understanding of socioecological contexts of Veterans who seek mental health treatment to address difficulties following MST will support a holistic approach to care.

Age-Related Variation in Ecological Resources Among Veterans Seeking Treatment Related to Military Sexual Trauma.

Approximately 16% of Veterans experience military sexual trauma (MST), defined as sexual assault or harassment experienced during military service. Veterans across life stages may possess differing resources and face unique stressors that impact their ability to engage in mental health treatment or require additional liaison to services. The present study sought to characterize age-related differences in the socioecological contexts of Veterans seeking mental health treatment following MST in the domains of economic sufficiency, housing, spiritual coping, supportive relationships, and interpersonal violence.

Worry differentially mediates posttraumatic cognition and posttraumatic stress symptom relationships among veterans seeking treatment associated with military sexual trauma.

Research has established negative posttraumatic cognitions (NPC) affect the development and course of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) following trauma exposure (L. A. Brown et al.

Trauma-focused therapy retention among military sexual trauma survivors: relationship with veterans' sexual or gender minority identification.

Military servicemembers identifying as sexual and gender minorities (SGM) are at increased risk for military sexual trauma (MST) exposure and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Although evidence-based treatments can reduce symptoms of PTSD, treatment attrition is concerning. Unfortunately, evaluations of such approaches with veterans identifying as SGM are currently restricted to case studies offering limited information regarding treatment completion.

Examining the efficacy of prenatal intervention in reducing IPV revictimization and improving maternal mental health: A quasirandomized controlled trial of the Pregnant Moms' Empowerment Program (PMEP).

Objective: The present study was a quasirandomized trial of the Pregnant Moms' Empowerment Program (PMEP) that examined the effects of the program on women's intimate partner violence (IPV) revictimization, depression, posttraumatic stress, and resilience. It was hypothesized that treatment would be associated with improvements across all of the indicated dimensions and that those women completing the module on violence and mental health would have particularly strong improvements.

Method: Women who were currently pregnant, IPV-exposed, and at least 16 years of age were recruited and assigned to either a treatment or control condition.

Patterns and predictors of perinatal posttraumatic stress symptoms: A latent transition analysis.

Background: Pregnancy is a time of increased risk for intimate partner violence (IPV), yet there is a dearth of prospective research examining the relationship between IPV and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in the perinatal period. Further, relationships among different types of IPV and perinatal PTSS remain understudied.

Methods: Latent class and transition analyses were used to examine classes of PTSS in pregnancy and postpartum, the longitudinal patterns of transitions across these classes, and the role of IPV types, childhood adversity, and depressive symptoms in PTSS presentation.

Pregnancy complications and intimate partner violence: The moderating role of prenatal posttraumatic stress symptoms.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) and posttraumatic stress disorder increase the risk of poor pregnancy outcomes, but associations among IPV exposure, mental health, and pregnancy complications remain underexplored. This study assessed the interaction between three types of IPV exposure (i.e.

Contrasting ecological contexts among treatment-seeking military sexual assault survivors: Consideration of relationships with sexual and gender minority identification.

Survivors of military sexual trauma (MST) seeking mental health services may present with concerns extending beyond symptom relief. Attention to social, economic, and coping resource contexts is salient for care consideration. Although those identifying as sexual and gender minorities (SGM) are overrepresented among service members exposed to assaultive MST, research contrasting ecological resource variability among treatment seekers is limited.

I'll catch you when you fall: Social safety nets and housing instability in IPV-exposed pregnant women.

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) has significant consequences for women's mental health, and it also compromises women's economic security and livelihood, including housing stability. There is a dearth of research, however, on protective factors in the link between housing instability and psychopathology in IPV-exposed women.

Methods: The current study examines the protective role of social support in the association between housing instability and mental health (depression, posttraumatic stress) in a sample of pregnant, IPV-exposed women (N = 137).

Intimate Partner Violence and Perinatal Post-Traumatic Stress and Depression Symptoms: A Systematic Review of Findings in Longitudinal Studies.

The link between maternal violence exposure and adverse obstetric outcomes is well-documented, but less is understood about the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) exposure and perinatal post-traumatic stress symptoms(PTSS) and depression in women around the world. A systematic review was conducted to synthesize empirical literature on the associations between IPV (e.g.

Feelings and feedings: Psychopathology and breastfeeding attitudes in women with a history of intimate partner violence.

Breastfeeding has myriad benefits for mother-child dyads, but women exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) are less likely to sustain breastfeeding. Prior studies, however, have not analyzed mothers' breastfeeding attitudes in relation to breastfeeding behavior, IPV, and psychopathology. Further, little research has examined distinctive effects of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and depression on breastfeeding behaviors and attitudes in IPV-exposed women.

Pathways of Internalizing and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms Across Childhood and Adolescence.

Research in adult populations has suggested a number of possible explanations for the high co-morbidity between posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and internalizing symptoms, including shared risk factors and reciprocal causation. Little research has examined these hypotheses in children or has considered the separation of between- and within-person effects. The objective of this study was to examine pathways between PTSS and internalizing symptoms using two samples drawn from the Longitudinal Studies on Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN, n = 1221) and the first National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW-I, n = 309).

Prenatal sleep quality and mental health symptoms across the perinatal period: A longitudinal study of high-risk women.

Background: Trauma-exposed women may be at magnified risk for posttraumatic stress (PTSS) and depression symptoms in the perinatal period, but few studies have examined symptomatology across the perinatal period in high-risk samples. Further, the role of sleep in perinatal symptomatology has been largely neglected in the violence literature, despite its well-established associations to mental health in other samples. This study aimed to examine the trajectory of PTSS and depression symptoms across the perinatal period and the effects of childhood adversity, intimate partner violence and prenatal sleep impairment on PTSS and depression symptoms across the perinatal period.

Intimate Partner Violence and Breastfeeding Outcomes in a Sample of Low-Income Women.

Background: Intimate partner violence has been related to breastfeeding difficulties. Few studies, however, have also accounted for other biopsychosocial risk factors associated with women's breastfeeding. Research aim: This study aimed to examine how prenatal intimate partner violence affects women's breastfeeding initiation, early cessation, and exclusivity at 6 weeks postpartum, controlling for perinatal health problems, prenatal depression, childhood adverse experiences, and prenatal breastfeeding education.

Emotion-related impulsivity and rumination predict the perimenstrual severity and trajectory of symptoms in women with a menstrually related mood disorder.

Objective: Women with menstrually related mood disorders (MRMDs) demonstrate clinically significant distress during the premenstrual week that remits with the onset of menses. Relatively little is known about psychosocial mechanisms of MRMDs. Given the core affective and behavioral symptoms of MRMDs, dysfunctional responses to emotion (e.