The impact of deployment-related stressors on the development of PTSD and depression among sexual minority and heterosexual female veterans

Objective Sexual minority female (SMF) veterans experience unique stressors apart from their service in the military. In this study, we compared SMF and heterosexual female (HF) veterans' rates of deployment-related stressors (i.e., military sexual assault, combat exposure, and harassment), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and major depressive disorder (MDD) and their association with one another. Method Participants were 699 female veterans who provided self-report data on exposure to deployment-related stressors and were assessed for MDD and PTSD by trained diagnosticians. Results SMF and HF veterans had similar rates of PTSD, MDD, and deployment-related stressors. However, deployment-related stressors were less likely to be associated with diagnosis or symptoms of either PTSD or MDD among SMF veterans. Conclusion SMF veterans may have unique stressors driving their development of MDD and PTSD. Understanding how different military stressors may confer risk for SMF veterans versus HF veterans is necessary to provide informed and sensitive clinical care to SMF veterans. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).