“I recently came across a series of research articles focused on complex post traumatic stress disorder (complex PTSD or CPTSD) and the daily life experiences of those with the diagnosis and their relatives. As you can imagine, I was excited as I had not heard of anything specific to relatives and complex PTSD. I reached out to the head researcher Manuel P Stadtmann, PhD to see if he might agree to an interview. He kindly agreed. Dr Manuel P Stadtmann, University of Zürich, Department of Psychology Dr Stadtmann is the lead researcher of a series of studies focused on the daily life experiences of sufferers (survivors) with complex post traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD). As part of the research, Dr Stadtmann and his team also explored the daily life experiences and perceptions of their relatives (close supporters) and the importance of relative support in symptom management of complex PTSD. The Research Heather Tuba (HT): I was very excited to read your research as I believe it is the first one that includes the daily experiences of relatives. For me, the conclusions of Mastering Life Together study validated what I observe in the lives of partners and what I have personally experienced. Thank you so much for your work. Manuel Stadtmann (MS): Yes, I absolutely get it or I assume I get it. When we started this project, there was a question about the real life experiences of the sufferers and their relatives although at first, we aimed to assess the ICD-11 (International Classification of Diseases) diagnosis of complex PTSD. But we decided to aim part of our research specifically at real life experiences. It’s really validating for me to hear that it is reflective of your life experience. We had some discussions whether there would be any results concerning the ‘real life’ of the patients or sufferers. Dr Manuel Stadtmann Read more here: https://heathertuba.com/complex-ptsd-family-support/