Written Exposure Therapy and App-Delivered Mindfulness Meditation for PTSD in China: A Pilot Study

Written Exposure Therapy (WET) is a manualized exposure-based therapy involving five sequential weekly individual sessions. Each session lasts approximately 40 minutes except the first, which is one hour. In the initial session, the therapist explains the treatment rationale and guides the participant to write about their traumatic experience uninterrupted for 30 minutes. Subsequent sessions start with a brief discussion about the previous session's writing, followed by another 30-minute writing session, concluding with a short check-in. There is no homework between sessions.

WET + MBA combines the standard WET protocol with the addition of a mindfulness practice facilitated through a mobile app called "Now Meditation." This app is among the most downloaded mindfulness apps in China, used to help manage symptoms of insomnia commonly comorbid with PTSD. Participants are instructed to engage in daily mindfulness exercises according to the app's "7-Day Basic Meditation" program and continue practicing mindfulness throughout the duration of the therapy. This is intended to supplement the therapeutic effects of WET by providing tools to manage insomnia and potentially enhancing the therapeutic process by fostering greater mindfulness and relaxation.

MCC contains weekly phone calls from a study therapist to monitor their status and provide support as needed, without introducing any specific therapeutic interventions. These calls are brief, generally lasting between 10 to 15 minutes, and are strictly for the purpose of engagement and safety monitoring rather than therapeutic intervention.