Living with PTSD

Snippets from The American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress’ Trauma Response E-News

Traumatic Stress, Hurricanes and Young Children

A study conducted at the University of Miami School of Medicine found that preschool-age children commonly exhibit symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after exposure to a life-threatening hurricane. Based upon reports from mothers, 16.5% of exposed children met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD one year after a hurricane and 11.6% continued to exhibit PTSD symptomatology eighteen months after. The presence of PTSD places young children at increased risk for failure to achieve normal development in cognitive, social, and emotional skills.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in America

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, an estimated 5.2 million American adults ages 18 to 54 have PTSD.

Events Leading to PTSD

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, the traumatic events most often associated with PTSD for men are rape, combat exposure, and childhood neglect and physical abuse. The most traumatic events for women are rape, sexual molestation, physical attack, being threatened with a weapon, and childhood physical abuse.

Paratroopers and PTSD

The results of a recent military study show that 17.4 percent of paratroopers returning from service in Iraq are suffering from PTSD.

 

Domestic Violence Victim Receives Stay of Execution - But It's Way Too Late

From Women's ENews

Lena Baker, an African American woman who was executed by electric chair in 1945 for killing E.B. Knight, a white man who enslaved and abused her, will be pardoned by the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles, reported The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Baker, the first and only woman to be killed by the state's electric chair, is still considered guilty for the crime, but should have been granted clemency, said the board's spokesperson, Scheree Lipscomb. Baker's great nephew went to a prison rights group directed by John Cole Vodicka seeking justice for his great aunt who, in an act of self defense, shot Knight with his own gun while he was beating her.

"Although in some ways it's 60 years too late, it's gratifying to see that this blatant instance of injustice has finally been recognized for what it was--a legal lynching," said Vodicka, of the Georgia-based Prison and Jail Project.

The pardon will occur in a presentation to Baker's successors on Aug. 30.

Survey: Israelis more depressed, anxious than Western Europeans

12% of adult Israelis have suffered from either mental distress or anxiety.

Zeev Klein    31 May 05   12:20

12% of adult Israelis (age 21 ) have suffered at least once in their lives from either mental distress or anxiety, although only 25% of these have applied in the past twelve months to a mental health professional or doctor for treatment. The figures are from a new national health survey published today by the Central Bureau of Statistics and the Ministry of Health.

The survey shows that rates of depression and anxiety in Israel are higher than in Western Europe. On the other hand, panic and post-trauma rates are slightly lower in Israel than in Western Europe.

Read the entire article: Survey: Israelis more depressed, anxious than Western Europeans.

World War II Commemoration Event to be Held in August 2005 on Tinian Island – 60th Anniversary of Nuclear Bombings to be Remembered by Many

Tinian, MP (PRWEB) May 14, 2005 -- Sixty years ago, the world-famous B-29's (Enola Gay and Bock's Car) were launched from Tinian. Their destination? Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which would become the target of the US atomic attack that promptly ended World War II.

Since that time, Tinian, an island located in the Northern Marianas (Northwestern Pacific Ocean) has become a Commonwealth of the United States, as well a prominent historical preservation area for World War II events.

From August 2-10, 2005, the Peaceful Commemoration of the 60th Anniversary of the Atomic Missions will be held on the island of Tinian.

Attending the event will be crews from the Enola Gay and other veterans, including the following:
- Pilot: General Tibbets
- Navigator: Dutch Van Kirk
- Weaponer: Morris Jeppson
- Scientists and Engineers of the Manhattan Project
- 112th Sea Bees, who built the four runways used by the B-29's
- Veterans of the 504th Bomb Group
- Veterans and Survivors of the USS Indianapolis

Over 100 US and Japanese veterans from this significant event in history will be available for interviews, personal visits and speeches. News organizations, writers, and historians are welcomed to attend and gather important facts directly from those who experienced the bombings and their impact on the world.

The calendar of events for this eight-day anniversary commemoration includes historical tours of Tinian Island, memorial commemorations for the atomic missions on August 6th and 9th, peace ceremonies, oral history presentations from the strike crews and atomic survivors, and other interesting events. Artifact exhibits will be available, reflecting back on Tinian history, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki photos. Visitors will be able to tour the Los Alamos National Atomic Museum exhibit as well.

"The commemoration event does not intend to assign blame but, instead, impart history through the personal knowledge and experiences of those that had lived it on both sides of the conflict. Tinian's commemoration goal is to turn 'hatred into hope' through an open dialog of the knowledge of events that transpired 60 years ago in venues that both sides can enjoy," states Phillip Mendiola-Long, the Chairman of 60th Events.

Visitors may attend the events of their personal interest. Tinian Island is a beautiful island with a tropical climate year round. The island is also where Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan are believed to be buried.

More information about the Peaceful Commemoration, a schedule of events, travel information, and more can be found at the web address: http://tinianhistory.org/.

For travel information including tour companies, airlines, and hotel accommodations, visit http://tinianhistory.org/tinian_travel.asp.

For an interview or further information, please contact Phillip Mendiola-Long, AIF by phone at (670) 433-1804 or fax to (670) 433-1813 or email: e-mail protected from spam bots.

Congress looks at consistency in veterans' disability claims

Randy Reese, national service director for Disabled American Veterans, said individual veterans can only guess whether they’ve been treated equitably by the claim adjudicators in comparison to peers. But DAV, with national service officers in every state, confirms that inconsistencies in VA decision-making exist between regions and sometimes within regions, between individual disability rating boards, Reese said.

The greatest inconsistencies occur with mental disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder, said Randy Reese, national service director for Disabled American Veterans.

Link: Congress looks at consistency in veterans' disability claims.

NAMIWALKS for the Mind of America

Every journey begins with that first step. In 2005, thousands of concerned citizens in more than 50 communities across the nation will join the Campaign for the Mind of America and walk together to raise money and awareness about our country's need for a world-class treatment and recovery system for people with mental illness.

Find out when they'll be walking in your area: NAMIWALKS for the Mind of America.

Trauma stress 'under-recognised'

Continued stress and anxiety after traumatic experiences is far more common than realised, say experts.

Five in 100 men and 10 in 100 women will get post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in their lifetime, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence says.

It says PTSD is under-recognised in the NHS and is urging better screening and treatment by issuing new guidelines.

Symptoms, including flashbacks, anger, anxiety and depression, can occur soon after a traumatic event or years later.

Link: BBC NEWS | Health | Trauma stress 'under-recognised'.

GAO Questions VA's Ability To Provide More PTSD Care -- Mulligan 39 (22): 12 -- Psychiatric News

Will veterans returning home from Iraq receive prompt and effective treatment for their war-related mental health disorders?

Neither the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) nor the Department of Defense (DoD) can provide a definitive answer, according to a recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The report, released September 20, offered recommendations that would lead to improved data collection and coordination between the two governmental agencies.

Link: GAO Questions VA's Ability To Provide More PTSD Care.

Forgotten Casualties

Mike Lemke, a 45-year-old Army National Guard police sergeant from Colorado Springs, Colo., volunteered for active duty after seeing the twin towers fall on TV. "I wanted to, you know, kick some tail," he says. He was sent home from Iraq in August 2003 because of orthopedic and cardiovascular problems -- and with memories and feelings he couldn't shake. He'd seen what was left of one of Saddam's prisons, prowled by feral dogs with rotting limbs in their mouths; he'd mingled constantly with civilians, never knowing if one was armed. "You never feel completely safe," he says. "That stays with you."

Lemke could not sleep for his first 22 days in the medical barracks in Colorado's Fort Carson, where he remained for more than a year on "medical holdover" -- a period during which wounded soldiers await treatment and subsequently either return to duty or get a medical exit from the Army. He experienced flashbacks and temper surges and would hit the dirt at the sound of a jackhammer.

No one approached Lemke to inquire about his mental health. Only when a nurse practitioner happened to ask him how he was sleeping did the story come out -- and even then it took him two weeks to accept her suggestion that he seek counseling.

Link: Forgotten Casualties.

Iraq... The Aftermath

On June 16, 2003, Dr. Ali Hameed Rasheed, an Iraqi psychiatrist, submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Health in Baghdad to create a psycho-social mental health referral system for children in Iraq. Though such systems already exist in many countries, Iraq is lacking one. The goal of the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Program for Iraqi children is to increase mental health awareness and reduce stigmatization of mental illness in the community.

Link: IslamOnline - Iraq... The Aftermath.