Treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder in postwar Kosovar adolescents using mind-body skills groups: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: To determine whether participation in a mind-body skills group program based on psychological self-care, mind-body techniques, and self-expression decreases symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Method: Eighty-two adolescents meeting criteria for PTSD according to the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (which corresponds with 16 of the 17 diagnostic criteria for PTSD in DSM-IV) were randomly assigned to a 12-session mind-body group program or a wait-list control group. The program was conducted by high school teachers in consultation with psychiatrists and psychologists and included meditation, guided imagery, and breathing techniques; self-expression through words, drawings, and movement; autogenic training and biofeedback; and genograms.

Treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder in postwar Kosovo high school students using mind-body skills groups: a pilot study.

This preliminary study examined whether the practice of mind-body techniques decreases symptoms of posttraumatic stress in adolescents. Posttraumatic Stress Reaction Index questionnaires were collected from 139 high school students in Kosovo who participated in a 6-week program that included meditation, biofeedback, drawings, autogenic training, guided imagery, genograms, movement, and breathing techniques. Three separate programs were held approximately 2 months apart.