isaster mental health refers to mental health services for victims, first responders, and medical personnel who experience disaster. Disaster can include a wide variety of sudden, catastrophic events that cause loss of life, such as an earthquake, a terrorist attack, or even a global pandemic.
Traumatic experiences during disaster can produce a variety of mental health conditions that last long after danger ends. Some of these may be related to neurological changes produced by long periods of “fight or flight.”
One of the most prominent conditions associated with disaster mental health is PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.) Once thought common only in military conflict, it is now understood PTSD can come from any intense experience of danger that provokes feelings of helplessness.
PTSD can have symptoms including flashbacks, memory loss (especially in relation to the traumatic event), anxiety, depression, difficulty sleeping, nightmares, and angry outbursts. The vast majority of PTSD sufferers are nonviolent and pose no threat to others.
Anxiety and depression are typical complications from any disaster. Both adults and children may feel guilty, believing they “should have done more.” Emotional flashbacks in which the sufferer re-experiences negative emotions without “seeing” or “hearing” the event, are common.
Disaster mental health treatment often includes a combination of medication and therapy. Medication focuses on reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression. Therapy can be in a group or one-on-one setting. Its primary goal is to help a sufferer process trauma.
One of the biggest challenges in disaster mental health care is the difficulty sufferers face verbalizing their experiences. Processing the emotions that come from trauma help reduce their effect on a person’s life. Novel approaches such as art therapy help many individuals express trauma in a way that helps. Techniques like journaling may also be used.
Disaster mental health patients need to identify psychological triggers in their environment. These triggers can cause them to re-experience the emotions or sensations of a past trauma. At first, recognizing and avoiding such triggers is advisable. With professional help, it’s possible to overcome the negative associations of triggers in a controlled environment.
Disaster mental health has been a prominent concern in psychology for decades. As researchers have uncovered effects of trauma on the brain, it has become clear profound neurological changes can occur during disaster even if one is not physically harmed.
Disaster mental health research focuses on two main areas: Reduction and treatment. Reduction aims to equip at-risk populations, like police and EMTs, with coping strategies to manage trauma. Treatment focuses on the neurobiology of trauma, creating better clinical resources for disaster mental health.
Millions of people all around the world are affected by mental health issues arising from disaster. The lessons of disaster mental health apply to everything from the COVID-19 outbreak to individual experiences of sexual assault or other criminal violence. With that in mind, all disaster mental health research has potential to help a broad spectrum of the population.
This list contains all disaster mental health clinical trials on record at ClinicalTrials.gov. To feature a clinical trial on our site, contact us.
Condition: Neurodegenerative DiseasesInterventions: Other: High intensity functional training; Other: classic training groupSponsor: University of ValenciaRecruiting
Condition: Autism Spectrum DisorderInterventions: Other: Exergaming; Other: Conventional Dexterity ExercisesSponsor: Riphah International UniversityRecruiting
Conditions: Disability Physical; Urinary Incontinence; ProlapseInterventions: Other: Pelvic floor muscle training; Other: Transverse abdominas strength trainingSponsor: Riphah International UniversityRecruiting
Condition: Intellectual DisabilityIntervention: Device: TSA2 Thermosensory StimulatorSponsor: National Institutes of Health Clinical Center (CC)Recruiting
Condition: Cervical Disc HerniationInterventions: Device: High Intensity Laser Therapy; Device: Ultrasound; Device: Transcutaneous nerve stimulation (TENS); Other: ExerciseSponsor: Baskent University Ankara HospitalRecruiting
Conditions: Migraine; Headache; Multiple Sclerosis; InsomniaInterventions: Behavioral: Smartphone-Based Progressive Muscle Relaxation Therapy (PMR); Behavioral: Monitored Usual Care (MUC)Sponsors: NYU Langone Health; Center for Advancing Point of Care Technologies; National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)Recruiting
Conditions: Eyes Dry Chronic; Chronic Conjunctivitis of Both Eyes; Limbal Stem-cell Deficiency; Eye Lesion; Eye Disease; Cataract; Eyes Dry Feeling of; Cornea Disease; Cornea Inflamed; Cornea; Injury, Abrasion; Cornea InfectionIntervention: Sponsors: Occyo GmbH; University Clinic for Ophthalmology and Optometry- SalzburgRecruiting
Condition: Cesarean Section ComplicationsInterventions: Other: Deep breathing excercises; Other: Deep breathing exercises +and progressive muscle relaxation techniques; Other: Deep breathing exercisesSponsor: Riphah International UniversityRecruiting
Condition: PsychosisInterventions: Behavioral: Water aerobics; Behavioral: Metacognitive Training (MCT); Behavioral: Combined interventionSponsors: Fundació Sant Joan de Déu; Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu; Solidaritat Sant Joan de Déu; FluidraRecruiting
Conditions: Migraine; Cold; Relaxation; ExerciseInterventions: Other: Exercise; Other: Cold ApplicationSponsor: Eylül Pınar KISARecruiting
Condition: DepressionIntervention: Behavioral: Group-based Lifestyle Medicine ProgramSponsor: Chinese University of Hong KongRecruiting
Condition: Prostate CancerInterventions: Other: Tai Chi Prehabilitation; Other: Usual careSponsors: AHS Cancer Control Alberta; Canadian Cancer Society (CCS)Recruiting
With more people experiencing disaster, stigma around seeking disaster mental health treatment is beginning to fade. Disaster mental health clinical resources will depend on active clinical trials that uncover further information about the brain’s trauma response. Further medical research may help millions of people reclaim their sense of stability.