I guess the old links dont work. These are notes from a SVR show I did that might help: Definition of a Stressor: The VA defines a stressor based on the DMS –IV (Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) thus: “the person experienced,witnessed,or was confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threathened death or serious injury,or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others, and the person’s response involved intense fear,helplessness, or horror.”