Stigma resistance is associated with advanced stages of personal recovery in serious mental illness patients enrolled in psychiatric rehabilitation.

BACKGROUND: Stigma resistance (SR) is defined as one's ability to deflect or challenge stigmatizing beliefs. SR is positively associated with patient's outcomes in serious mental illness (SMI). SR appears as a promising target for psychiatric rehabilitation as it might facilitate personal recovery. OBJECTIVES: The objectives of the present study are: (i) to assess the frequency of SR in a multicentric non-selected psychiatric rehabilitation SMI sample; (ii) to investigate the correlates of high SR. METHODS: A total of 693 outpatients with SMI were recruited from the French National Centers of Reference for Psychiatric Rehabilitation cohort (REHABase). Evaluation included standardized scales for clinical severity, quality of life, satisfaction with life, wellbeing, and personal recovery and a large cognitive battery. SR was measured using internalized stigma of mental illness - SR subscale. RESULTS: Elevated SR was associated with a preserved executive functioning, a lower insight into illness and all recovery-related outcomes in the univariate analyses. In the multivariate analysis adjusted by age, gender and self-stigma, elevated SR was best predicted by the later stages of personal recovery [rebuilding; p = 0.004, OR = 2.89 (1.36-4.88); growth; p = 0.005, OR = 2.79 (1.30-4.43)). No moderating effects of age and education were found. CONCLUSION: The present study has indicated the importance of addressing SR in patients enrolled in psychiatric rehabilitation. Recovery-oriented psychoeducation, metacognitive therapies and family interventions might improve SR and protect against insight-related depression. The effectiveness of psychiatric rehabilitation on SR and the potential mediating effects of changes in SR on treatment outcomes should be further investigated in longitudinal studies.

Being parent is associated with suicidal history in people with serious mental illness enrolled in psychiatric rehabilitation.

Parenting is a central life experience that could promote recovery in people with Serious Mental Illness (SMI). It could also be challenging for parents with SMI and result in poor recovery-related outcomes. Parenting is often overlooked in psychiatric rehabilitation. The objectives of the present study were to identify the characteristics and needs for care of mothers and fathers with SMI enrolled in a multicentric non-selected psychiatric rehabilitation SMI sample. We consecutively recruited 1436 outpatients from the French National Centers of Reference for Psychiatric Rehabilitation cohort (REHABase). The evaluation included standardized scales for clinical severity, psychosocial function, quality of life and satisfaction with life, wellbeing, personal recovery and a broad cognitive battery. We found that parenting was associated to suicidal history in mothers and fathers with SMI. In the multivariate analysis, being mother was best explained by insight (p < 0.015, adjusted OR = 0.76 [0.59-0.90]), current age (p < 0.001, aOR = 1.13 [1.07-1.21]), education level (p = 0.008; aOR = 0.12 [0.02-0.53]) and family accommodation (p = 0.046, aOR = 0.19 [0.03-0.84]). Being father was best explained by suicidal history (p = 0.005, aOR = 3.85 [1.51-10.10]), marital status (in relationship, p < 0.001; aOR = 7.81 [2.73-23.84]), satisfaction with family relationships (p = 0.032, aOR = 1.22 [1.02-1.47]) and current age (p < 0.001, aOR = 1.16 [1.10-1.23]). In short, parenting was associated to increased history of suicide attempt in mothers and fathers with SMI. Mothers and fathers with SMI may have unique treatment needs relating to parenting and recovery-related outcomes. The implementation of interventions supporting the needs of parents with SMI in psychiatric rehabilitation services could improve parent and children outcomes.

Narrative enhancement and cognitive therapy (NECT) to improve social functioning in people with serious mental illness: study protocol for a stepped-wedge cluster randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Self-stigma is highly prevalent in serious mental illness (SMI) and is associated with poorer clinical and functional outcomes. Narrative enhancement and cognitive therapy (NECT) is a group-based intervention combining psychoeducation, cognitive restructuring and story-telling exercises to reduce self-stigma and its impact on recovery-related outcomes. Despite evidence of its effectiveness on self-stigma in schizophrenia-related disorders, it is unclear whether NECT can impact social functioning. METHODS: This is a 12-centre stepped-wedge cluster randomized controlled trial of NECT effectiveness on social functioning in SMI, compared to treatment as usual. One hundred and twenty participants diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or borderline personality disorder will be recruited across the 12 sites. The 12 centres participating to the study will be randomized into two groups: one group (group 1) receiving the intervention at the beginning of the study (T0) and one group (group 2) being a control group for the first 6 months and receiving the intervention after (T1). Outcomes will be compared in both groups at T0 and T1, and 6-month and 12-month outcomes for groups 1 and 2 will be measured without a control group at T2 (to evaluate the stability of the effects over time). Evaluations will be conducted by assessors blind to treatment allocation. The primary outcome is personal and social performance compared across randomization groups. Secondary outcomes include self-stigma, self-esteem, wellbeing, quality of life, illness severity, depressive symptoms and personal recovery. DISCUSSION: NECT is a promising intervention for reducing self-stigma and improving recovery-related outcomes in SMI. If shown to be effective in this trial, it is likely that NECT will be implemented in psychiatric rehabilitation services with subsequent implications for routine clinical practice. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03972735 . Trial registration date 31 May 2019.

Self-stigma in serious mental illness and autism spectrum disorder: Results from the REHABase national psychiatric rehabilitation cohort.

BACKGROUND: Self-stigma is a major issue in serious mental illness (SMI) and is negatively associated with patient outcomes. Most studies have been conducted in schizophrenia (SZ). Less is known about self-stigma in other SMI and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The objectives of this study are: (i) to assess the frequency of self-stigma in a multicentric nonselected psychiatric rehabilitation SMI and ASD sample; and (ii) to investigate the correlates of elevated self-stigma in different SMI conditions and in ASD. METHODS: A total of 738 SMI or ASD outpatients were recruited from the French National Centers of Reference for Psychiatric Rehabilitation cohort (REHABase). Evaluations included sociodemographic data, illness characteristics, and standardized scales for clinical severity, quality of life, satisfaction with life, wellbeing, personal recovery, a large cognitive battery, and daily functioning assessment. RESULTS: 31.2% of the total sample had elevated self-stigma. The highest prevalence (43.8%) was found in borderline personality disorder and the lowest (22.2%) in ASD. In the multivariate analysis, elevated self-stigma was best predicted by early stages of personal recovery (moratorium, p = 0.001, OR = 4.0 [1.78-8.98]; awareness, p = 0.011, OR = 2.87 [1.28-6.44]), history of suicide attempt (p = 0.001, OR = 2.27 [1.37-3.76]), insight (p = 0.002, OR = 1.22 [1.08-1.38]), wellbeing (p = 0.037, OR = 0.77 [0.60-0.98]), and satisfaction with interpersonal relationships (p < 0.001, OR = 0.85 [0.78-0.93]). CONCLUSIONS: The present study has confirmed the importance of addressing self-stigma in SMI and ASD patients enrolled in psychiatric rehabilitation. The effectiveness of psychiatric rehabilitation on self-stigma and the potential mediating effects of changes in self-stigma on treatment outcomes should be further investigated.

Neuroanatomical correlates of visually evoked sexual arousal in human males.

Brain areas activated in human male sexual behavior have not been characterized precisely. For the first time, positron emission tomography (PET) was used to identify the brain areas activated in healthy males experiencing visually evoked sexual arousal. Eight male subjects underwent six measurements of regional brain activity following the administration of [15O]H2O as they viewed three categories of film clips: sexually explicit clips, emotionally neutral control clips, and humorous control clips inducing positive but nonsexual emotions. Statistical Parametric Mapping was used to identify brain regions demonstrating an increased activity associated with the sexual response to the visual stimulus. Visually evoked sexual arousal was characterized by a threefold pattern of activation: the bilateral activation of the inferior temporal cortex, a visual association area; the activation of the right insula and right inferior frontal cortex, which are two paralimbic areas relating highly processed sensory information with motivational states; and the activation of the left anterior cingulate cortex, another paralimbic area known to control autonomic and neuroendocrine functions. Activation of some of these areas was positively correlated with plasma testosterone levels. Although this study should be considered preliminary, it identified brain regions whose activation was correlated with visually evoked sexual arousal in males.