Biological Psychology Commons^™

Estradiol And Daily Affective Experiences In Trauma-Exposed Women, Jenna Rieder

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

People who experience trauma can develop enduring trauma-related symptoms. In daily life, post-trauma symptoms (e.g., elevated physiological arousal) can be triggered by affectively salient cues in the environment, especially by cues that act as trauma reminders. Trauma exposure is associated with enduring changes in two biological stress systems: the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. In women, activity in both systems is additionally modulated by fluctuations in levels of sex hormones (e.g., estradiol), which could influence physiological responses to trauma reminders. Additionally, previous work has linked the sex hormone estradiol with affect, suggesting that menstrual cycle might …