Thursday, July 4, 2013

Flooding causes mental damage, too

Two men use a fishing boat to rescue residents from a High River neighbourhood on June 20 after the town was completely evacuated. Photo, courtesy Global News.ca.

Flooding causes mental damage, too

By Karin Klassen, For the Calgary Herald July 1, 2013

The thing about floods, is that there are a lot of them. They are the most commonly occurring type of natural disaster, with expectations that with global warming, whatever the cause, there will be a trend in so-called flood events even in the relatively short term.

While this is not great news for anyone living in a flood plain or on a coast, it's been a field day for social scientists gathering the flotsam and jetsam of data. Rates of increase in anxiety disorders, depression, PTSD, and how to avoid all of these issues after the water dries, has been the main focus of these studies. Included in the range of symptoms are disrupted sleep patterns, relationship issues, aggression, discrimination, alcohol use and "sucidal-ity."

Read story here: http://bit.ly/14oGyib

No comments: