3 - (SYM 51) Do We Really Need to Talk About It? Informal Trauma Disclosure and PTSD Treatment

Sunday, November 23, 2025

10:39 AM - 10:56 AM CST

Location: Foster 2, Level 2

Keywords: Couples / Close Relationships, Veterans, Treatment
Recommended Readings: Liebman, R. E., Whitfield, K. M., Sijercic, I., Ennis, N., & Monson, C. M. (2020). Harnessing the healing power of relationships in trauma recovery: A systematic review of cognitive-behavioral conjoint therapy for PTSD. Current Treatment Options in Psychiatry, 7, 203-220., Landes, S. D., Wilmoth, J. M., London, A. S., & Landes, A. T. (2023). Risk factors explaining military deaths from suicide, 2008–2017: A latent class analysis. Armed Forces & Society, 49(1), 115–137. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0095327X211046976, Monson, C. M., Wagner, A. C., Mithoefer, A. T., Liebman, R. E., Feduccia, A. A., Jerome, L., ... & Mithoefer, M. C. (2020). MDMA-facilitated cognitive-behavioural conjoint therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: an uncontrolled trial. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 11(1), 1840123., ,

Speaker(s)

Laura Meis, Ph.D.

Clinical Psychologist
Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD
Minneapolis, MN, United States

Co-author(s)

SN

Siamak Noorbaloochi, PhD

Core Investigator
Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA
Minneapolis, MN, United States
BS

Brian Smith, PhD

Deputy Director
Women's health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, VA Boston
Boston, MA, United States
DV

Dawne Vogt, PhD

Health Science Specialist
National Center for PTSD
Boston, MA, United States
MP

Melissa Polusny, PhD LP

Staff Psychologist, Professor
Minneapolis VA/University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN, United States
AE

Afsoon Eftekhari, PhD

Psychologist
National Center For PTSD
Menlo Park, CA, United States
CR

Craig Rosen, PhD

Director
National Center for PTSD, Dissemination and Training Division
Menlo Park, CA, United States
JF

Jessica Friedman, PhD

Health Experience Researcher
VA Greater Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA, United States
ET

Emily Taverna, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

Postdoctoral Fellow
National Center for PTSD
Boston, MA, United States
KH

Kristen Howard, PhD

Psychologist
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin
Milwaukee, WI, United States
MS

Michele Spoont, PhD

COIN Investigator
Center for Care Delivery and Outcomes Research, Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System
Minneapolis, MN, United States

Abstract Body

Discussing details of prior traumatic experiences with therapists is an important component of trauma-focused treatments (TFTs) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Cross-sectional and survey-based research suggests that disclosure to loved ones about prior trauma (i.e., informal trauma disclosure) may also be associated with lower PTSD symptoms. Yet, little is known about the importance of informal trauma disclosure in TFT outcomes nor how these associations may vary by gender or relationship quality. Veterans seeking TFTs at four Veteran Affairs hospitals (n = 534) were surveyed upon TFT initiation (T1) and four months later (T2). Analyses examined associations among informal disclosure, veterans’ perceived constraints to disclosure, relationship happiness, and PTSD symptoms over time using a multigroup structural equation modeling framework. Results from multigroup path analysis models suggested that increases in the frequency of informal disclosure predicted better treatment response (i.e., PTSD symptom severity at T2, controlling for T1) for men but not women. Alternatively, simply feeling more comfortable disclosing to loved ones (regardless of actual disclosure) was associated with better treatment response for both men and women. For women, benefits of informal disclosure and comfort with disclosure were more pronounced at higher levels of relationship happiness, whereas relationship happiness played less of a role for men. Results highlight conditions under which informal disclosure to loved ones may be beneficial for both women and men in PTSD treatment. Findings indicate that consideration of social constraints to disclosure and relationship satisfaction may be important to achieving this aim.