Current psychological trauma-focused interventions have left a gap for individuals who may not be ready for trauma-focused treatment and/or who present with other forms of clinically significant distress, such as subthreshold post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Emotion regulation is a possible transdiagnostic mechanism of change that may promote and maintain some of the varied mental health problems related to trauma exposure.

This study examines the feasibility and initial impact of two brief emotion regulation skill trainings targeting different processes hypothesized to reduce trauma-related problems, compared with an active control.

Subjects (n = 156) were randomized to receive one of three brief internet-based trainings: (1) skill training on accepting emotions, (2) skill training on changing emotions, or (3) stress psychoeducation (control). Participants completed measures of emotion regulation, mindfulness, and affect intensity 24 hours pre- and immediately post-training.

Results suggested that a brief internet-based skills training programme was feasible and acceptable, with 91.9% completing the training programme to which they were randomized. Results showed that participants in all conditions demonstrated significant decreases in emotion regulation problems over time; yet these improvements did not vary by condition. Participants in the Change condition with higher PTSD symptoms were significantly more likely to have greater increases in positive affect compared with those with lower PTSD symptoms.

Although the three conditions did not show different outcomes, all three brief internet-delivered trainings were feasible. Results provide direction for future studies to evaluate the delivery of emotion regulation skills in individuals with trauma-related distress.

La tentative de suicide d’un sujet propage une souffrance en cascade sur les différents cercles de l’entourage familial et affectif, qui peut se mesurer en termes de stress traumatique et d’impact médicoéconomique. Chaque année, 3 750 000 français sont concernés par une TS de l’un de leurs proches.

Homme ou femme, âgé de plus de 16 ans sans limite supérieure d’âge, membre de l’entourage proche d’un suicidant (sujets habitant sous le même toit que le suicidant). Au total, 171 familles ; soit 171 suicidants et 171 « informateurs ménages ». Ces sujets ont été comparés aux données de l’Institut de recherche et de documentation en économie de la santé (IRDES) sur la population française (échantillon de 20 000 personnes, représentatif de 95 % des ménages français). L’ensemble des sujets a été recontacté par téléphone après 3 mois et 1 an.

Quatre-vingt-sept pour cent des proches vont « plutôt bien » à 1 an ; les 13 % qui vont moins bien sont importants à qualifier au plus tôt après la TS. Un modèle explicatif de la probabilité d’aller mal après 1 an est possible ; modèle dominé par l’impact psychotraumatique de la scène suicidaire ou de l’activation des secours (70 % de symptômes psychotraumatiques dans ce sous-groupe). Sur le plan médicoéconomique, nous observons une grande stabilité des contacts de soin à 1 an, qui contraste avec une forte augmentation des consommations médicamenteuses (×2,37) ; toutes les catégories pharmacologiques sont concernées. L’hypothèse d’une automédication en partie non consciente et non perçue est soulevée.

This study examines late consequences of war and migration in both non-clinical and clinical samples of child survivors of World War II. This is one of the very few studies on the mental health of children who were subjected to internment in camps, hiding, and violence under Japanese occupation in the Far East. It provides a unique case to learn about the significance of experiences of war and migration in later life.

Long-term sequelae of the Japanese persecution in the Dutch East Indies (DEI) in child survivors were studied by analyzing sets of standardized questionnaires of 939 persons. Instruments dealt with post-traumatic responses, general health, and dissociation. Participants were recruited through community services and registers of clinical services. Discriminant analyses were conducted to evaluate the significance of early experiences in determining group belonging.

Compared with age-matched controls that lived through the German occupation in the Netherlands during World War II, the child survivors from the DEI reported both more trauma-related experiences and mental health disturbances in later life. In particular, the number of violent events during the war, among which especially internment in a camp, contributed to the variation among groups, in support of the significance of these disruptive experiences at older age.

The results underline the long-term significance of World War II-related traumatic experiences in the population of elderly child survivors who spent their childhood in the former DEI.