Poster Session #2: UC South Ballroom
Presentation Type
Poster
Faculty Mentor’s Full Name
Cameo Stanick
Faculty Mentor’s Department
Psychology
Abstract / Artist's Statement
More than five million children in the United States are exposed to some form of trauma each year (Pfefferbaum, 1997). Victims may develop a variety of posttraumatic stress symptoms, including PTSD. Sleep disturbance and nightmares are potential side-effects of trauma that can have detrimental results on the well-being of the child. ERRT, or Exposure, Relaxation, and Rescription Therapy was designed and proven effective in the treatment of trauma-related nightmares in adults. This treatment was recently adapted for use with children, known as Exposure, Relaxation, and Rescription Therapy-Child Version (ERRT-C). ERRT-C incorporates practices from well-established child-focused trauma treatments as well as parent components that focus on improving sleep hygiene and reducing nightmares. The purpose of this research is to provide (1) an overview of the ERRT-C program (5-session outline), (2) a literature review of the studies conducted thus far on ERRT and ERRT-C (3 studies), as well as findings from a small case series (N=2) that demonstrated preliminary support for ERRT-C. ERRT-C is a brief, innovative, child-focused adaption of an existing evidence-based treatment for trauma-related nightmares. The dissemination of effective treatments is crucial to their widespread implementation. A review of this research will help to expand knowledge and use of ERRT-C.
Category
Social Sciences
ERRT-C: A Treatment for Trauma-Related Nightmares in Children
More than five million children in the United States are exposed to some form of trauma each year (Pfefferbaum, 1997). Victims may develop a variety of posttraumatic stress symptoms, including PTSD. Sleep disturbance and nightmares are potential side-effects of trauma that can have detrimental results on the well-being of the child. ERRT, or Exposure, Relaxation, and Rescription Therapy was designed and proven effective in the treatment of trauma-related nightmares in adults. This treatment was recently adapted for use with children, known as Exposure, Relaxation, and Rescription Therapy-Child Version (ERRT-C). ERRT-C incorporates practices from well-established child-focused trauma treatments as well as parent components that focus on improving sleep hygiene and reducing nightmares. The purpose of this research is to provide (1) an overview of the ERRT-C program (5-session outline), (2) a literature review of the studies conducted thus far on ERRT and ERRT-C (3 studies), as well as findings from a small case series (N=2) that demonstrated preliminary support for ERRT-C. ERRT-C is a brief, innovative, child-focused adaption of an existing evidence-based treatment for trauma-related nightmares. The dissemination of effective treatments is crucial to their widespread implementation. A review of this research will help to expand knowledge and use of ERRT-C.