Helping men with the trauma of miscarriage.

Although much has been written about women and miscarriage, little has been researched or written about the partners of these women and their reactions to the pregnancy loss. The purpose of this paper is to review what is known about the subject and to suggest an approach to psychotherapy that is sensitive to the needs of these men and helps them make sense of their loss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)

The bulk of the extant literature on the psychology of boys, men and masculinity has been focused on the important challenges of: a) creating an awareness about the detrimental effects of constricted forms of masculinity on boys and men and their relationships with others; and b) developing remedial approaches to psychotherapy that are designed to help boys and men recover from dysfunctional masculinity. The purpose of this article is to expand this literature by introducing the positive psychology/positive masculinity (PPPM) framework, which emphasizes male strengths as the starting point for psychotherapy with boys and men. The central principles of the PPPM framework are described, and the application of the PPPM model with an adult man in psychotherapy is presented. The implications of the PPPM model for future practice and research pertaining to boys, men, and masculinity are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)

Psychotherapists began sharing their clinical experiences with men’s gender-related psychological issues and the challenges of addressing them in therapy during the late 1970s and early 1980s (e.g., O’Neil, 1981; Scher, 1979; Skovholt, 1978). However, it has taken several decades for these messages and the accompanying research to yield advances that are being adopted into more mainstream psychotherapeutic practices. Over the recent three decades, the theory, research, and clinical wisdom about psychotherapy with men can be viewed as falling into several main clusters. Reviewing the earliest writings, some of these pioneering therapists’ initial clinical observations remain highly relevant today. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)

Objectives: To describe the iterative process of emergency planning and preparedness: risk assessment, planning, rehearsal, implementation, and refinement. Design: A narrative reflection of two complete facility evacuations in advance of major hurricanes in 2005 (hurricane Rita) and 2008 (hurricane Ike) conducted by a postacute rehabilitation facility located on the Texas gulf coast. Participants: Facility staff involved in the evacuation and ongoing care post evacuation, and adults with moderate to severe acquired brain injury receiving residential postacute rehabilitation and long-term care services. Results: Experiences from two evacuations revealed that planning and preparation beyond what is required by licensing and accrediting agencies is necessary; attending to the needs of staff during and after and the emergency is a critical component of planning and preparedness; and the necessity of incorporating “lessons learned” into refinement of emergency preparedness plans. Conclusions: Facilities providing residential services to persons with neurological injury are potentially vulnerable to a number of natural and manmade disasters. Careful planning, preparation, and practice are necessary to ensure safe evacuation of persons served and facility personnel in response to an emergency. Experiences (i.e., “lessons learned”) from each evacuation, subsequent changes to emergency preparedness plans, and recommendations for emergency preparedness beyond a natural disaster, such as a hurricane, are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)

Purpose: An accumulation of disaster mental health research literature in the last few decades has contributed knowledge to direct disaster mental health interventions. However, no single set of principles can necessarily outline all anticipated mental health needs to be encountered in a particular disaster. Methods: To illustrate how different disaster scenarios may yield a divergence of mental health needs, this article compares mental health findings from two distinctly different studies of two very different populations affected by two very different disasters: directly exposed survivors the Oklahoma City bombing and sheltered evacuees from Hurricane Katrina. Results: Research on the two disasters reviewed illustrates many facets and complexities of postdisaster mental health needs in different populations in different settings after different types of disasters. The major findings of the Oklahoma City bombing study related to posttraumatic stress disorder and the main findings of the Hurricane Katrina study involved need for treatment of preexisting chronic mental health and substance abuse problems. Conclusion: The disaster studies in this review diverged in type of disaster, affected populations, setting, and timing of the study, and these studies yielded a divergence of findings. One disaster mental health model clearly cannot adequately describe all postdisaster scenarios. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)

Objectives: To determine the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the psychosocial health of people with disabilities and on the ability of people with disabilities in the affected area to live independently. Participants: Transcribed conversations were analyzed for 56 survivors of Hurricane Katrina on the American Gulf Coast, all of whom were persons with disabilities or persons working with them. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted either individually or in focus groups with participants. Qualitative analysis was undertaken using hermeneutic techniques. Results: Six major themes emerged: faith, incredulousness, blaming others or oneself, family adaptation and resiliency, and work and professional responsibility. Conclusions: The resiliency of persons with disabilities to adapt to disasters can be better understood through factors such as these, providing an effective barometer of social capital that can help societies prepare for future disasters among those most vulnerable. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)