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Traumatic Memory

Traumatic Memory

Emotionally traumatic events often lead to memories that are exceptionally vivid and enduring, sometimes persisting with remarkable clarity throughout an individual's life. A classic example of this phenomenon is a person who survives a car accident. Even years later, they may recall every detail of the event with startling accuracy — the screeching of the tires, the jarring impact, and the acrid smell of burning rubber. Such vividness contrasts sharply with how an individual remembers mundane...

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Effectiveness of Imagery Rescripting for Trauma-Affected Voice Hearers: An Open Trial.

Laura Strachan¹, Peter McEvoy¹, Arnoud Arntz²

¹School of Psychology, Curtin University, Curtin, Western Australia, Australia.

Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy

|September 19, 2024

Summary

Imagery rescripting (ImRs) significantly reduced auditory verbal hallucinations and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in voice hearers. This study confirms ImRs as an effective intervention for these challenging symptoms.

Keywords:

PTSD auditory verbal hallucinations imagery rescripting post‐traumatic stress trauma voices

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Area of Science:

Psychiatry
Clinical Psychology
Trauma Studies

Background:

Auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) are often comorbid with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Cognitive behavioural therapies (CBT) show inconsistent results for AVH and PTSD in voice hearers.
Imagery rescripting (ImRs) shows preliminary promise for reducing AVH and PTSD symptoms.

Purpose of the Study:

To examine the effectiveness of ImRs in reducing AVH and PTSD symptoms in a larger sample of voice hearers.
To replicate and extend previous findings on ImRs for voice hearers.

Main Methods:

A one-arm open trial with 49 voice hearers from an Australian transdiagnostic clinic.
Assessment of PTSD, AVH, and emotional symptoms at baseline, mid-treatment, post-treatment, and 3-month follow-up.
Weekly monitoring of trauma intrusions, voice distress, frequency, and valence.

Main Results:

Very large reductions in PTSD symptoms, AVH, and emotional symptoms were observed post-treatment and at follow-up.
Medium-large to large reductions in weekly symptoms of intrusions, voice distress, frequency, and negative voices.
A non-significant increase in positive voices was noted.

Conclusions:

ImRs is an effective treatment for auditory verbal hallucinations and PTSD symptoms across various diagnoses in voice hearers.
Further research, including randomized controlled trials comparing ImRs to CBT, is warranted.