ARTICLE
DISORDERS OF EXTREME STRESS NOT OTHERWISE SPECIFIED (DESNOS) - A CASE STUDY
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Psychoter 2007;142(3):43-51
ABSTRACT
The examination of people who experienced frequent trauma has shown that their psychophysical problems are much more complex than those described in the diagnostic criteria for PTSD. This resulted in the creation of a new diagnostic concept of Disorders of Extreme Stress Not Otherwise Specified (DESNOS). The diagnostic criteria for DESNOS comprise changes in personal activity after frequent traumatic events within six areas of functioning: alteration in regulation of affect and impulses; attention or consciousness; self-perception; relations with others; systems of meaning; somatisation. The main purpose of the presented paper was to focus on the specific functioning of persons who have experienced frequent trauma, a characteristic that could be diagnosed as DESNOS. The first part of the paper is the diagnostic criteria for DESNOS and the concept of its treatment. The second part is the case presentation and the description of the therapeutic approach in a patient with domestic violence history, diagnosed as DESNOS.