Modifying copying with stress as a method of preventing the recurrence of mental disorder symptoms

The purpose of this article is to find answers to two questions of practical nature regarding the effectiveness of psychotherapy by referring to research results. These questions are the following: (1) In the case of which mental disorders is there a need to increase the skills of coping with stress in order to prevent the recurrence of symptoms? (2) What would that increase in coping skills be based on? A review of research on the deferred effects of psychotherapy showed that, firstly, studies address only depressive disorders, and, secondly, that teaching different cognitive and behavioral skills is effective in preventing the recurrence of these disorders. A review of studies on the contribution of stress to the etiology of mental disorders showed that in case of 13 disorders the contribution of stress is confirmed by empirical evidence. The theoretical clinical literature suggests that stress contributes to the induction of symptoms in cases of a larger number of disorders. Based on a review of research on coping with stress in representative general populations of adults experiencing stressful situations or traumatic events, it was determined what the ability of effective coping with stress consists in. It consists in adapting appropriate coping strategies aimed at eliminating the stressor or at mitigating the negative emotions associated with stress. In psychotherapy, teaching this skill seems to be a promising method of preventing the recurrence of mental disorder symptoms whose formation is associated with stress.