Psychological symptoms from the Hurricane Katrina disaster

The Hurricane Katrina disaster attracted thousands of deaths and scores of casualties. It further left behind painful mental injuries on the survivors and the community around. The psychological damage that was caused by the Katrina disaster lasted months with victims undergoing hard times mentally. Several studies have focused on the psychological impact of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

The psychological symptoms notably vary with demographic variables such as age and sex; other variables such as educational background and race have also influenced the impact and duration of the mental/ psychological injuries. Data relating to the Hurricane Katrina disaster effects indicate that majority of the hurricane’s victim suffered acute stress disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The rates of post-traumatic stress disorder in the affected population/ victims were seen to be high during the first weeks of the disaster but sharply as weeks went by, the PTSD in the victims declined sharply. (Kullgren, G. (2001).

In essence, the victims of both disasters and the affected communities suffered psychological injuries. Most of them portrayed symptoms associated with the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) which included anxiety, depression, insomnia, emotional numbing and drug abuse among other symptoms. The symptoms however vary with the various factors indicated above such as age, sex, race and educational level. The worst symptoms however included drug abuse depression and general stress.