Learning From The Past and Planning For The Future
MENTAL HEALTH MOMENT March 15, 2002 "Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of 80 and gradually approach 18" - Mark Twain LINKS AND SHORT TOPICS
LINKS AND SHORT TOPICS
DISPATCH FROM NEW ZEALAND: BRACED FOR DISASTER
Fifteen Penn State undergraduates are traveling in New Zealand to study the causes and social consequences of natural disasters. Kevin Furlong, professor of geosciences, and graduate student Jane Lock are leading the adventure--from March 2 through March 17--funded by the CAUSE program in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and the Schreyer Honors College. The students are taking turns sending dispatches from New Zealand. For a full account of their experiences, including images, visit http://www.geodyn.psu.edu/geosc497h
METRO AREAS DIFFER IN RECEPTIVITY TO IMMIGRANTS
Immigrants to the United States find the most welcoming climate from native residents of cities mostly on the East Coast and in the Midwest, according to a Penn State study. Of native-born Americans living in the 20 major metropolitan areas, those in Atlanta, Baltimore, Detroit, Miami, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Seattle and Washington, D.C. are the most open to immigrants. Positive attitudes toward immigrants are also to be found in Chicago, New York, Pittsburgh and St. Louis. On the other hand, native-born Americans living in Dallas, San Diego, San Francisco and Tampa express the least receptive attitudes toward immigrants, while citizens of Boston, Houston and Los Angeles have generally cool attitudes toward immigrants. Gordon F. De Jong, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Demography, and Quynh-Giang Tran, doctoral candidate in sociology and demography, co-authored a paper on the topic for a recent issue of Population Today. For the full story by Paul Blaum, visit: http://www.psu.edu/ur/2002/Immigrants.html
STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT INTEGRATING BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES into primary care can dramatically improve health and behavioral health outcomes and create significant financial benefits. How can an organization develop an integrated care program? Discover how during The Integration of Primary Care and Behavioral Health: Lessons Learned from the Field, May 17-18, 2002 at the University of Nevada, Reno. To register or request a brochure, call: (775) 784-4062 or (800)233-8928, or visit http://dce.unr.edu. Registration Fee: $50.00 for both days.
INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR TRAUMATIC STRESS STUDIES--NY CHAPTER: Annual conference May 18, 2002. Psychoneuroimmunology and Trauma: The Mind-Body-Spirit Continuum. E-mail: Mlt35@columbia.edu. Dr. Kalayjian, (212) 636-6346.
BIOFEEDBACK/STRESS MGMT, ADD/ADHD TRAINING AND INTERNSHIP COURSES: 3, 9, 14, 17 day, 21-week courses with extensive instrument experience. Also Home Study Course. Exciting new applications for ADD/ADHD, addictions, depression, pain, panic, stress-related disorders, incontinence, geriatrics, chronic pain. Be more effective, broaden your professional scope, provide satisfying short-term treatment options. Now approved by Medicare. Ask about BFT/EEG Instruments. Biofeedback Inst/ LA, M. Toomim, Ph.D., Dir., (800) 246-3526.
CAPE COD INSTITUTE: June 24-August 30, 2002. 25 Timely/Lively Week-long CE Courses by Master Teachers Behavior OnLine, Inc. with Professional Learning Network, LLC Toll-Free: (888) 394-9293; prolearning@behavior.net, visit us at: http://www.cape.org
April 11 - 14, 2002 82nd Annual Convention of The Western Psychological Association Location: Irvine, California, USA Contact: http://www.westernpsych.org
April 12 - 14, 2002 Annual Conference Society for Industrial/Organizational Psychology (SIOP) Location: Toronto, Ontario, CANADA Contact: lhakel@siop.bgsu.edu URL: http://www.siop.org
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Most parents recognize when their children's behavior suggests emotional distress. During routine, non-crisis periods, parents are tuned in to the nuances of their children's behavior. For example, most mothers can immediately tell if their young son or teen-age daughter has had a bad day in school or had a fight with their best friend. One very common sign that indicates distress is the sudden appearance of a very busy child who suddenly decides that he/she will watch TV with parents and is not even particular about what they are watching. For most parents this is when the antennae go up and they become aware that it is time to give an extra hug and be available. Usually a few words will eventually pass between the parent and child. The parent smiles a little, the child appears relieved, and as quickly as the child appeared, he/she vanishes back into his/her now somewhat re-organized and more normal world. In normal circumstances, with the majority of families, this scene plays over and over. Without ever really thinking anything about it, it becomes just a slice of everyday life. Disasters, however, are not normal or routine. Therefore, they impose a significant abnormality on daily routines. Everyone is affected. Typical modes of interacting with others become strained. Everyone is trying to get a grip on things. As a result, there is less focus on supporting each other. Within this context, children experience the aftermath of disasters. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP, 1998) suggests that a child's reaction to a disaster such as a hurricane, flood, fire, earthquake, etc. depends on how much destruction is experienced during or following the event. The death of family members or friends is very traumatic. Other severely traumatic events include the loss of the family home, school, special pets, and the extent of damage to the community. The degree of impact on children is also influenced by the destruction they witness and experience second hand on television and other media sources. Children generally recover from the frightening experiences associated with a disaster without the need for professional intervention. Most just need time to be able to experience their world as a secure place again and to experience their parents as the nurturing caregivers who themselves are again in charge. Studies of how children have reacted to past catastrophic events are limited. However, in the work that is available on this topic, there is a consistent pattern of responses and factors which influence difficulties children might have returning to their pre-disaster levels of functioning. Yule and Canterbury (1994) reviewed a number of studies dealing with children who were exposed to traumatic events. Types of reactions experienced by many children included feeling irritable, alone, and having difficulty talking with their parents. Many experienced guilt over not being injured or losing their homes. Adolescents were prone to bouts of depression and anxiety. Younger children demonstrated regressive behaviors associated with earlier stages of development. Many children who had difficulty reconciling their feelings engaged in play involving disaster themes and repetitive drawings of disaster events. Children as young as two or three can often recall events associated with disasters. A child's level of cognitive development will influence their interpretation of stressful events. Some of the studies that were reviewed by Yule and Canterbury (1994) suggest that the intellectual ability of the child, their sex, age, and family factors influence their recovery. Girls experience greater stress reactions than boys. Bright children recover their pre-disaster functioning in school more rapidly. Families who have difficulty sharing their feelings experience greater distress. Additionally, there appears to be a direct relationship between the degree of exposure to frightening events and the difficulty in emotional adjustment and returning to pre-disaster levels of functioning. Other researchers have tried to explain factors which influence children's reactions to traumatic and stressful events. In a review of the emotional effects of disaster, Aptekar and Boore (1990) reported that one's beliefs as to who or what caused the disaster and the degree of destruction are major influences on children's reactions. They also identified five other factors which influence recovery from the traumatic event. These are:
NORMAL REACTIONS OF CHILDREN TO DISASTER INDUCED STRESS In another review, Vogel and Vernberg (1993) suggest factors that influence children's recovery. These include: children's developmental level on their ability to comprehend traumatic events, their coping repertoire, and their involvement with other groups of people beyond the immediate family. A longitudinal study by Vernberg, LaGreca, Silverman and Prinstein (1996) provides an account of how elementary school children responded to the disastrous impact of Hurricane Andrew in Dade County, Florida. They concluded that many symptoms experienced by these children can be understood using an integrated conceptual model discussed by Green et al (1991). They investigated four factors:* the child's developmental level * the child's premorbid mental health * the community's ability to offer support * the parents' presence or absence during the event * the reaction of significant adultsVernberg et al (1996), in their model, suggested five factors:* exposure to traumatic events during and following the disaster * pre-existing child characteristics * post-disaster recovery environment (social support) * coping skills of the childThe primary focus of this study was to determine which factors influence the lingering symptoms and subsequent identification of children experiencing PTSD. The authors concluded that symptoms associated with PTSD could represent normal adaptive reactions and that for many children the effects of a disaster may still be observed beyond one to two years following the event. In an attempt to determine what made the various symptoms persist in these elementary school children, they found the daily hassles of routine life in the weeks and months after the incident interacted with the severity of the trauma experienced, thus making it difficult to recover. Strains of ongoing life events (e.g. loss of employment by a parent, divorce, or other stressors) impacted the availability of a supportive environment. Other factors they identified included the overall loss of essential support from the community and schools given the respective impact the disaster had on these social systems. ********************************************************************************* exposure to traumatic events during and following the disaster * pre-existing demographic characteristics * occurrence of major life stressors * availability of social support * type of coping strategies used to manage disaster-related stressREFERENCES American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. (1998). Facts for families: Helping children after a disaster [Fact Sheet No. 36]. Washington, DC: Author. http://www.aacap.org/publications/factsfam/disaster.htm Retrieved March 4, 2002. Aptekar, L. & Boore, J.A. (1990). The emotional effects of disaster on children: A review of the literature. International Journal of Mental Health, 19(2), 77-90. Green, B.L., Korol, M., Grace, M.C., Vary, M.G., Leonard, A.C., Gleser, G.C. & Smitson-Cohen, S. (1991). Children and disaster: Gender and parental effects on PTSD symptoms. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 25, 346-356. Vernberg, E.M., LaGreca, A.M., Silverman, W.K. & Prinstein, M.J. (1996). Prediction of posttraumatic stress symptoms in children after hurricane Andrew. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 105(2), 237-248. Vogel, J. & Vernberg, E.M. (1993). Children's psychological response to disaster. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 22, 470-484. Yule, W. & Canterbury, R. (1994). The treatment of post traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents. International Review of Psychiatry, 6, 141-151. To search for books on disasters and disaster mental health topics, children and disasters, schools and disasters, crisis intervention, schools and crises, suicide, PTSD and children, families and disaster and related topics and purchase them online, go to the following url: https://www.angelfire.com/biz/odochartaigh/searchbooks.html ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** Contact your local Mental Health Center or check the yellow pages for counselors, psychologists, therapists, and other Mental health Professionals in your area for further information. ********************************************************************** George W. Doherty O'Dochartaigh Associates Box 786 Laramie, WY 82073-0786 MENTAL HEALTH MOMENT Online: https://www.angelfire.com/biz3/news
