Group Intervention for Resiliency and Posttraumatic Growth Following Sexual Trauma in Women Veterans

Women service members have higher rates of childhood sexual trauma in comparison to civilian women and almost 50 percent of women reported joining the military to escape stressful home environments. Women Veterans also experience a myriad of traumatic stressors while in the military, including high rates of Military Sexual Trauma (MST), combat exposure, deployments, and/or perceived personal danger which can increase the risk of developing Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Research with Veteran populations demonstrates that individuals with a history of trauma who experience psychological distress are more likely to be exposed to future trauma and that multiple traumatic events across the lifespan can have an aggregate negative impact on well-being, particularly in the post-deployment adjustment stage, often depleting them of important coping resources. Furthermore, women Veterans with combat exposure and/or MST experience PTSD differently than civilian women or military men, and therefore may require tailored and integrative treatments. The current evidenced-based treatments offered at the VA do not necessarily target aspects of resiliency. Studies have shown that interventions that are based in resiliency may reduce susceptibility to Posttraumatic symptoms, depression and suicide, and mediate the development of mental illness following trauma exposure. Interventions that focus on resiliency and posttraumatic growth (PTG) may help decrease symptom presentation, increase quality of life, and reduce the utilization and/or cost of care. This pilot project developed and implemented a resiliency group intervention manual and client workbook specifically tailored to women Veterans with histories of military sexual trauma in a clinical treatment setting. We evaluated feasibility and explored the impact of the psychoeducation group as it relates to overall knowledge and utility of resiliency skills. Outcome measures of enrollment rate, completion rate, drop-out rate and a knowledge/satisfaction questionnaire showed that the resiliency skill building psychoeducation group was feasible and acceptable. Data also showed that that the intervention positively increased scores related to resilience and posttraumatic growth, reduced clinical symptoms as assessed by the PCL-5 and PHQ-9, and improved quality of life in women Veterans that have experienced MST.