Post-abduction syndrome

"This article deals only with a proposed syndrome. For information on related topics see:"

Post-abduction Syndrome (PAS), also sometimes called Post-abduction Stress Syndrome (PASS), is a collection of symptoms commonly reported by persons who claim they have been the victim of an alien abduction. The syndrome is not officially recognized by the American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association or by equivalent professional associations in other nations. PAS shares many symptoms with the officially recognized Post-traumatic Stress Disorder but is not the same. PAS does not refer to all abductions, e.g., a criminal kidnapping, but only those allegedly involving "alien abductions".

Various researchers report that many of the symptoms reported in PAS situations are similar or identical to reports of encounters with demons or other paranormal phenomena. (Catoe 1978; Vallée 1988; Alnor 1992; Ross 2002)

Controversial views and issues

The nature and validity of UFO's, the UFO phenomenon and the alien abduction phenomenon are extremely controversial issues encompassing a wide range of opinions. PAS is not currently considered by mental health associations as describing a recognized mental health condition and there is ongoing debate as to whether PAS describes a condition that should be considered a mental health problem and the specific nature of that problem.

UFO phenomenon

"UFO phenomenon" is a term developed by researchers, e.g., Jacques F. Vallée,^* to describe certain events that often have common characteristics including sighting an unidentified flying object, interaction with apparently intelligent non-human beings, certain types of poltergeist activity, and/or things that appear to be manufactured physical objects but that defy the laws of physics, e.g., a "flying saucer" making a 45-degree turn while traveling at 15,000 miles per hour. (Vallée 1988; Ross 2002) The difference between "UFO" and "UFO phenomenon" is that a "phenomenon" occurrence does not necessarily involve a "flying object" or an apparent vehicle (such as a landed "flying saucer"). (Vallée 1988; Ross 2002)

:* French astronomer / ufologist / computer scientist Jacques "F." Vallée should not be confused with Canadian astronomer Jacques "P." Vallée.

Alien abduction

Alien abduction refers to the hypothesis than an individual has been abducted by an intelligent being either from another planet (the Extraterrestrial Hypothesis, ETH), or from an "alternate reality" (the Interdimensional Hypothesis, IDH).

Some Christian researchers accept the IDH and assert that the "alternate reality" is the spirit world and the beings are demons. (Weldon, Levitt 1975; Sumrall 1984; Alnor 1992; Ross 2002) This religious interpretation is acknowledged by secular researchers such as Keel (1970) and Vallee (1988).

Syndrome

PAS is based on a cluster of symptoms initially compiled by alien abduction researcher Budd Hopkins and described in his books "Missing Time" (1981) and "Intruders" (1987). The purpose of PAS is to help determine whether someone shows the cluster of symptoms typically indicated by persons believed to have been exposed to certain phenomena, regardless of the actual nature of those phenomena. It is not the purpose of PAS to determine whether alien abductions, UFO's or UFO encounters involve physical objects, or to determine the nature of purported events as natural, paranormal, supernatural, etc.

Symptoms

Following are some of the symptoms described by Hargrove (2000): [http://aliensandchildren.org/post_abduction_syn.htm]
* Persistent re-experiencing of the traumatic event characterized by flashbacks (APA, 1994)
* Persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma (APA, 1994)
* Denial of the event
* Labeling the event something else-"blackout", being lost, etc.
* Phobic avoidance of areas or situations where contact occurred.
* Refraining from sleep at the time contact occurred-sleeping in the daytime
* Emotional reaction to literature, pictures, or videos about alien entities e.g. turning over books with a picture of an alien or UFO which may include avoiding them. (Bryant, 1991)
* Numbing of emotions and responsiveness characterized by inability to feel intimacy, pleasure, or to express emotions-emotional anesthesia. (APA, 1994, Bryant,1991)
* Diminished interest or less participation in previously enjoyed activities. (APA, 1994)
* May have a sense of foreshortened future -no expectation of normal life events or normal life span. (APA, 1994)
* May fear abduction with no return or lengthy abduction.
* Anxiety symptoms that persist-hypervigilance, exaggerated startle response, irritability, and panic attacks (APA, 1994)

Sources

* cite book
last= Abduction Study Conference
coauthors= Pritchard, David; Pritchard, Andrea
title= Alien Discussions: Proceedings of the Abduction Study Conference Held at M.I.T. Cambridge, Ma.
format= Textbook Binding
date= 1995
publisher= North Cambridge Press
location=
language= English
id= ISBN 0-9644917-0-2
pages= 683 pp

* cite book
last= Alnor
first= William M.
title= UFOs in the New Age - Extraterrestrial Messages and the Truth of Scripture
format= paperback
year= 1992
publisher= Baker Book House
location= Grand Rapids, MN
language= English
id= ISBN 0-8010-0226-5
pages= 293 pp

* cite book
last = American Psychiatric Association
title= Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders DSM-IV-TR Fourth Edition
origyear= 1994
edition= DSM-IV-TR 4th Ed.
year= 2000
publisher= American Psychiatric Publishing
language= English
id= ISBN 0-89042-025-4
pages= 943 pp

* cite book
last= Bryant
first= Alice
coauthors= Seebach, Linda, M.S.W.
title= Healing Shattered Reality: Understanding Contactee Trauma
format= paperback
date= 1991
publisher= Wildflower Press
location= Tigard, OR
language= English
id= ISBN 0-926524-16-X
pages= 283 pp

* cite book
last= Catoe
first= Lynn E.
title= UFOs and Related Subjects: A Bibliography prepared by the Library of Congress Science and Technology Division, for the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Office of Aerospace Research
format= hardcover
edition= Annot. Ed.
origdate = 1978
date= 2002
publisher= Martino Publishing
language= English
id= ISBN 1-57898-394-0
pages= 401 pp

* cite paper
author = Hargrove RN, Rose
title = Post Abduction Syndrome (PAS): Description of an Emerging Syndrome
version = paper
publisher =
date = Feb. 14, 2000
url = http://aliensandchildren.org/post_abduction_syn.htm
format = HTML
accessdate = 2006-10-08

* cite book
last= Hopkins
first= Budd
title= Missing Time
format= hardcover
edition= 1st. ed.
year= 1981
publisher= Penguin Group (USA)
location=
language= English
id= ISBN 0-399-90102-7
pages= 256 pp

* cite book
last= Hopkins
first= Budd
title= Intruders
format= hardcover
edition= 1st Ed.
year= 1987
publisher= Random House Publishing Group
location=
language= English
id= ISBN 0-394-56076-0
pages= 288 pp

* cite conference
first = David M.
last = Jacobs, Ph.D.
title = Post-Abduction Syndrome
booktitle = MUFON 1988 International UFO Symposium Proceedings
pages = pp. 91-92
publisher = MUFON Inc.
date = 1988
location = Seguin,Texas

* cite book
last= Jacobs, Ph.D.
first= David M.
title= Secret Life: Firsthand Accounts of UFO Abductions
format= paperback
edition= Reprint 1993
date= 1992
publisher= Simon & Schuster
location= New York
language= English
id= ISBN 0-671-79720-4
pages= 340 pp

* cite book
last= Keel
first= John A.
title= UFOs: Operation Trojan Horse
origdate= 1970
date= 1996
publisher= Illuminet Pr
language= English
id= ISBN 0-9626534-6-2
pages= 285 pp

* cite book
last= Mack, M.D.
first= John E.
title= Abduction: Human Encounters with Aliens
format= paperback
edition= Reprint ed.
date= 1995
publisher= Ballantine Books
language= English
id= ISBN 0-345-39300-7
pages= 464 pp

* cite book
last= Mack, M.D.
first= John E.
title= Passport to the Cosmos- Human Transformation and Alien Encounters
format= paperback
edition=
date= 1999
publisher= Three Rivers Press
location= New York
language= English
id= ISBN 0-609-80557-6
pages= 333 pp

* cite book
last= Ross, Ph.D.
first= Hugh
coauthors= Samples, Kenneth; Clark, Mark
title= Lights in the Sky & Little Green Men
format= paperback
date= 2002
publisher= NavPress
location= Colorado Springs
language= English
id= ISBN 1-57683-208-2
pages= 255 pp
chapter=

* cite journal
last = Schnabel
first = Jim
title = Chronic claims of alien abduction and some other traumas as self-victimization syndromes
journal = Dissociation
volume = 7
issue = 1
pages = 51–62
publisher = Ridgeview Institute and the International Society for the Study of Dissociation
date = March 1994
url = https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/dspace/bitstream/1794/1519/1/Diss_7_1_8_OCR.pdf#search=%22%22post%20abduction%20syndrome%22%22
id = ISSN 0896-2863
accessdate = 2006-10-10

* cite book
last= Sumrall
first= Lester
title= Alien Entities - Beings from Beyond
format= paperback
date= 1984
publisher= LeSEA Publishing
location= South Bend, IN
language= English
id= ISBN 0-89274-320-4
pages= 232 pp

* cite book
last= Vallee, Ph.D.
first= Jacques
year = 1988
title = Dimensions: A Casebook of Alien Contact
edition = 1st ed.
pages = 304 pp
publisher = Contemporary Books
id = ISBN 0-8092-4586-8

* cite book
last= Weldon, Ph.D.
first= John
coauthors= Levitt, Zola
year = 1975
title = Encounters with UFO's
edition = 1st ed.
language= English
pages = 175 pp
publisher = Harvest House Publishers
id =

* cite book
editor= Williams, Tom, Psy.D., Editor.
title= Posttraumatic Stress Disorders: A Handbook For Clinicians
date= 1987
publisher= Disabled American Veterans
location= Cincinnati
language= English
id= (Cited by Hargrove)

See also