Storms' Collateral Damage -blackenterprise.com

blackenterprise.com: "Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have left thousands of displaced Americans at high risk for mental disorders that could long outlast the emergency care they're getting now, evidence from studies of disaster survivors suggests.

The chaos after the storms has several hallmarks that can delay trauma recovery or increase odds of people developing serious disaster-related mental illness, says Daniel Nelson, a child psychiatrist at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

'It's troubling because some of the things that buffer people from effects of trauma are just not here, and there are danger signs instead,' says Nelson, who counseled adults and children after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.

Those who fare best after disasters have ample money and can return to their routines quickly with family and friends nearby. But evacuees are disproportionately poor, and many cannot get back to their routines and locales easily, Nelson says.



Those with pre-existing mental illness or earlier traumas, such as rapes or recent family deaths, are the most vulnerable, he says.
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