Maroti Daniel, Frisch Stephan, Lumley Mark A
Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Greta Arwidssons Väg 30, 114 19, Stockholm, Sweden.
Klinik für Psychosomatische Medizin und Psychotherapie, Universitätsklinikum Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
Schmerz. 2025 Mar 21. doi: 10.1007/s00482-025-00878-6.
Persistent physical symptoms (PPS), including (primary) pain, can, according to Emotional Awareness and Expression Therapy (EAET), be precipitated, perpetuated, and prolonged by emotional processes related to unresolved trauma and psychosocial conflicts. EAET is a novel, short-term, psychodynamic- and emotion-focused psychological treatment that targets these etiological factors, intending to substantially reduce or eliminate pain and/or somatic symptoms.
This article provides an overview of EAET's theoretical background, core treatment principles, and empirical evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in alleviating somatic symptoms in people with PPS. Moreover, the potential of EAET and future research directions are discussed.
We report a selective literature review synthesizing the foundations and treatment characteristics of EAET and the findings from RCTs investigating EAET since 2017.
Grounded in psychodynamic theory, with influences from affective neuroscience and emotion-focused therapy, the core treatment principles are reframing symptom explanations, fostering emotional processing, and facilitating corrective interpersonal experiences. EAET has been implemented in various formats, including individual therapy, group therapy, and internet-administered self-help. Since 2017, seven RCTs have been published, demonstrating efficacy in reducing symptoms, which appears superior to cognitive-behavioral therapy.
EAET is particularly effective for treating chronic (primary) pain conditions such as fibromyalgia and musculoskeletal pain. However, further studies are required to evaluate its long-term efficacy, determine patient characteristics associated with positive outcomes, and better understand its most active mechanisms.
根据情绪觉察与表达疗法（EAET），持续性身体症状（PPS），包括（原发性）疼痛，可能由与未解决的创伤和心理社会冲突相关的情绪过程引发、持续存在并延长。EAET是一种新型的、短期的、以心理动力和情绪为重点的心理治疗方法，针对这些病因因素，旨在大幅减轻或消除疼痛和/或躯体症状。
本文概述了EAET的理论背景、核心治疗原则以及随机对照试验（RCT）在减轻PPS患者躯体症状方面的实证证据。此外，还讨论了EAET的潜力和未来研究方向。
我们报告了一项选择性文献综述，综合了EAET的基础和治疗特点以及自2017年以来调查EAET的RCT的结果。
基于心理动力理论，受情感神经科学和以情绪为中心的治疗的影响，核心治疗原则是重新构建症状解释、促进情绪处理以及促进矫正性人际体验。EAET已以多种形式实施，包括个体治疗、团体治疗和互联网自助治疗。自2017年以来，已发表了七项RCT，证明其在减轻症状方面有效，其效果似乎优于认知行为疗法。
EAET对治疗慢性（原发性）疼痛病症，如纤维肌痛和肌肉骨骼疼痛特别有效。然而，需要进一步研究来评估其长期疗效，确定与积极结果相关的患者特征，并更好地理解其最有效的机制。
