The DOI matches its Crossref record; 18 of the 19 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Dreams in the acute aftermath of trauma and their relationship to PTSD
Abstract
Dreams following trauma have been suggested to aid emotional adaptation, yet trauma‐related nightmares are a diagnostic symptom of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). There is little published data relating dreams to PTSD soon after trauma. We assessed dreams and PTSD in 60 injured patients after life‐threatening events and obtained follow‐up assessments in 39 of these participants 6 weeks later. Ten of 21 dream reports from morning diaries were rated and described as similar to the recent traumatic event. The participants reporting these distressing “trauma dreams” had more severe concurrent PTSD symptoms than those reporting other categories of dreams and had more severe initial and follow‐up PTSD than those without dream recall. These findings along with our preliminary longitudinal observations relating changes in dream patterns to outcome, suggest a relationship of dream characteristics and early adaptive versus maladaptive patterns of processing traumatic memory.
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Metadata
- Authors
- Mellman, T. A., David, D., Bustamante, V., Torres, J., & Fins, A.
- Affiliations
- Dartmouth–Hitchcock Medical Center (US)
- University of Miami (US)
- Corresponding author
- Mellman, Thomas A.
- Venue
- Journal of Traumatic Stress
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2001-01
- Volume
- 14
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 241-247
- ISSN
- 0894-9867 (ISSN-L)
- 1573-6598
- OpenAlex
- W2036322386
- Cited by
- 149
- References
- 19
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 8
- FWCI
- 6.25
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Traumatic Stress (publishedVersion)
- NSUWorks (Nova Southeastern University) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychoanalysis and Psychopathology Research
- Keywords
- nightmares, post-traumatic stress disorder, acute trauma, life-threatening injuries, emotional adjustment, dream recall, longitudinal follow-up
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