ADJUSTMENT DISORDERS AND RESILIENCE TRAINING

Abstract

Adjustment Disorder (AD) is a maladaptive emotional and behavioral response to a specific psychosocial stressor in which the individual's reaction disproportion to the severity of the event. This disorder causes severe distress and impairment in daily social and occupational functioning. The pathophysiology of AD is based on the dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the biological implications of prolonged stress, which can result in an allostatic load (the wear and tear on the body) caused by inadequate stress management. Resilience, defined as the ability to maintain psychological health and adapt in the face of adversity is essential for AD management. Emotion regulation, cognitive flexibility and social support are important components that promote resilience. AD is managed using a multimodal approach that combines pharmaceutical and non-pharmacological therapies to relieve acute symptoms. To rebalance the autonomic nervous system and encourage neuroplasticity, resilience training, psychotherapy and complementary therapies including yoga, mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and physical therapy.