Prolonged Exposure Therapy for Adolescents with PTSD Emotional Processing of Traumatic Experiences, Therapist Guide

The program applies the principles of Prolonged Exposure (PE) Therapy to help adolescents emotionally process their traumatic experiences. The treatment program is comprised of four phases, each containing several modules that adolescents progress through at their own rate. The pretreatment preparation phase includes modules on motivational interviewing and case management. During the first treatment phase, modules cover the rationale for treatment, gathering information about the trauma, and common reactions to trauma. Modules in the next phase, exposures to trauma-related situations and recounting the traumatic memory, make up the core of the treatment. By systematically confronting situations associated with the trauma, adolescents overcome their trauma-related fear and avoidance. Recounting the memory of the traumatic event helps adolescents process and organize the memory and promotes feelings of mastery. The final phase involves modules on relapse prevention and treatment termination.