Self-Disgust and PTSD: Self-disgust is a negative self-conscious emotional schema that originates from the basic emotion of disgust and is directed toward physical (physical self-disgust; e.g., “I find myself repulsive”) or behavioral aspects of the self (behavioral self-disgust; e.g., “I often do things I find revolting”; Overton et al., 2008). Over the last decade, research has shown that self-disgust has been associated with a range of psychological difficulties, including social anxiety (Amir et al., 2010 insomnia (Ypsilanti et al., 2018), impaired body image and disordered eating behavior (Espeset et al., 2012; Olatunji et al., 2015), and PTSD symptoms in women with a history of sexual assault (for a recent review see Clarke et al., 2019). The role of self-disgust in such traumatic experiences in females has been related to mental contamination (Badour et al., 2013), a state that is experienced predominately in relation to moral rather than physical violations. In this case, the victims report feeling “dirty inside” and demonstrate higher self-directed disgust (Coughtrey et al., 2012). Several studies have also highlighted the mediating properties of self-disgust on the association of cognitive processes and socio-emotional experiences with mental health outcomes. In particular, self-disgust has been found to mediate the association between dysfunctional thoughts and depression (Powell et al., 2013); loneliness and depressive symptoms in the general population (Ypsilanti et al., 2019); loneliness and anxiety symptoms in older adults (Ypsilanti et al., 2020); and PTSD symptoms (PCL-5 sub-clusters of avoidance, re-experiencing, changes in cognition and affect) and suicide risk (Brake et al., 2017) in undergraduate students. More specifically, self-disgust significantly mediated the relationship between all the sub-clusters of PCL-5 outlined in the DSM-IV-TR (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2000) and suicide attempts. However, thus far no study has examined self-disgust in war veterans diagnosed with PTSD and its role in the development of loneliness and mental health outcomes.
Name
Disgust - 9
Owner
0xA75E52DC9616C9b99f28DBf9d4A2db16dbcdB5D7
ID#99439912…049921
Rarity
LO:63%
Disgust
Nine
EX:MAX