Oral 18

[O-18-03] The impact of different sources of social support on women’s mental recovery after exposed to multiple traumatic events

*Yao Xu¹, Helen Herrman², Rebecca Bentley², Atsuro Tsutsumi¹, Thach Tran³, Jane Fisher³ (1.Kanazawa University(Japan), 2.University of Melbourne(Australia), 3.Monash University(Australia))

Keywords:

PTSD,Prolonged grief disorder,Social support,Trauma

Background: Exposed to multiple traumatic events like disasters and child loss are highly associated with trauma- and stressor-related disorders. Social support is well recognised as an important predicator for post-trauma mental recovery. To explore the impact of different sources of social support on the mental recovery, this study investigated the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and prolonged grief disorder (PGD) symptoms, and the relationships between different sources of support and the symptoms of these two conditions in women who had lost a child, for most, their only child, in an earthquake. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted by using individual structured interviews that incorporated widely used standardised psychometric measures. Path analyses were used to test the relationships. Results: Overall, 226 women provided complete data; 89% (201/226) of them reported clinical significant symptoms of PGD and 54% (132/226) symptoms of PTSD, 80% of whom (180/226) had indications of comorbidity in PTSD and PGD. Having a supportive, affectionate, confiding relationship with the intimate partner and having a subsequent child were each associated with fewer symptoms of PGD and PTSD. An intimate partner was a more important source of social support than support from other people. Participants who had given birth to a subsequent child since the earthquake had a more positive relationship with their partners and better mental health. Conclusions: Even accounting for an increased supply of needed psychological services in the area, social support played an important role in post-trauma mental recovery. The data suggested the necessity of mental health information and training to understand and address the quality of relationships between intimate partners and social support for women after traumatic events. More research is needed to establish the different effects of diverse sources of emotional and practical support on post-traumatic mental recovery.