program for alleviating and resolving trauma and stress 1

Conditions: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Summary: this single-arm pilot study (phase 1) will test the preliminary efficacy of a virtually delivered, live-online 16-week group model of internal family systems (ifs) for individuals with ptsd, called the parts program, on ptsd symptoms measured by clinician-administered ptsd scale (caps-5). in addition, feasibility, acceptability, and effects on self-report ptsd and disturbances of self-organization (dso) will be secondary outcomes.

the investigators will conduct a single-arm pilot study to test the preliminary efficacy of a virtually delivered, live-online 16-week group model of internal family systems (ifs) for individuals with ptsd, called the parts program, on ptsd symptoms measured by clinician-administered ptsd scale (caps-5). secondary outcomes include feasibility and acceptability of the parts program measured by a credibility/expectancy questionnaire (ceq) and treatment satisfaction questionnaire. secondary clinical outcomes include the effects of the parts program on self-report ptsd and disturbances of self-organization (dso). exploratory aims of the study are to investigate the effects on emotion regulation (ders), self-trauma fusion (iprism-trauma), disassociation (mdi), depression (cat-di), self-compassion (scs-sf), perceived stress (pss), mindfulness (tms), and interception (maia-2). additional exploratory outcomes include changes in outcome variables among ptsd subjects with baseline dso and those without dso as defined by the international trauma questionnaire (itq).

Eligibility criteria:
inclusion criteria to qualify for inclusion in this study, a prospective participant must: 1. be 18-70 years of age for the duration of the study; 2. able to bill insurance for group psychotherapy and individual psychotherapy at cha; 3. be a current patient of cha primary care, behavioral health care or cha mindwell; 4. have a current diagnosis of ptsd or a cat-mh ptsd measure p-cat\>58; 5. have sufficient english fluency and literacy skills to understand the consent process, procedures and questionnaires and have the ability to provide written informed consent; 6. have access to the internet and an electronic device with adequate data capacity; to complete questionnaires online and attend online videoconference groups; 7. must be available and willing to attend the scheduled online group sessions for 16 weeks; and 8. must be available and willing to complete the online computerized assessments and phone interviews. exclusion criteria any and all of the following criteria will exclude a prospective participant from the study: 1. inability to complete an informed consent assessment and/or inability to complete baseline study assessment procedures (due to cognitive deficit, non- proficiency in english literacy, or for any other reason); 2. current participation in another experimental research study; 3. expected medical hospitalization in the next six months from enrollment period; 4. expected incarceration in the next six months from enrollment period; 5. individuals who are pregnant with a due date within 26 weeks after study consent; 6. insufficient level of severity of ptsd symptoms: ptsd score of less than 33 on the ptsd checklist for dsm-v (pcl-5) at screening visit; 7. inability to participate safely in the study intervention and without disrupting the group (in the opinion of principal investigator or meeting any of the following criteria): * past year history of a psychotic disorder or clinician confirmed active psychosis (severe level of psychosis on psy-s-cat \> 60 will trigger the requirement of a clinical assessment prior to participation in the program) * bipolar i disorder history or severe level of mania on cat-m/hm (\>70) * acute suicidality or self-injurious behavior * severe depression, indicated by cat-di phq-9 equivalency score \>20 * acute homicidality with plan and/or intent; * hospitalization for suicide attempt or self-harm within three months of the enrollment period; * severe borderline personality disorder or other severe personality disorder that may lead to disruptions within the group; and/or * moderate or severe substance use disorder.

Keywords: ptsd; stress