Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Posttraumatic Stress
Background
The earthquake that struck Taiwan on September 21, 1999, left over 2,000 people dead and
more than 4,000 injured (as of September 22). More than 100,000 were left homeless in the
island's rugged central regions. Clinical and research information collected from previous
earthquakes has helped us to understand that survivors face both the danger of death or
physical injury and the loss of their loved ones, homes, possessions, and communities.
The effects of these traumas are immeasurable and long lasting. Survivors are at high risk for
behavioral and emotional readjustment problems. Psychiatrists in Turkey reported high rates
of "nervous reactions" and "reactive depression" in the immediate aftermath of the
earthquake there.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder occurs in 32% to 60% of the adult survivors and 26% to 95%
of the children survivors who have been evaluated after earthquakes. Rather than being a
circumscribed event with a defined endpoint, earthquakes tend to produce a series of events
that continue to affect people's lives over a prolonged period.
Older people and those with a prior history of mental-health problems seem to be at greater
risk than others for experiencing posttraumatic stress following an earthquake. Also at risk
are rescue workers with high levels of catastrophic exposure and individuals who, in reaction
to the earthquake, tend to "dissociate," or become "numb," and have a sense of being
detached from their emotions and bodily experiences for a prolonged period of time.
Latar Belakang
Gempa bumi yang melanda Taiwan pada tanggal 21 September 1999,
meninggalkan lebih dari 2.000 orang tewas dan lebih dari 4.000 terluka (per
September 22). Lebih dari 100.000 orang kehilangan tempat tinggal di daerah
pusat kasar pulau. Klinis dan penelitian informasi yang dikumpulkan dari gempa
bumi sebelumnya telah membantu kita untuk memahami bahwa korban
menghadapi kedua bahaya kematian atau luka fisik dan kehilangan orang yang
dicintai, rumah, harta benda, dan komunitas mereka.
Efek dari trauma ini beragam dan tahan lama. Selamat beresiko tinggi untuk
masalah penyesuaian perilaku dan emosional. Psikiater di Turki melaporkan
tingkat tinggi "reaksi saraf" dan "depresi reaktif" segera setelah gempa di sana.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder terjadi pada 32% sampai 60% dari korban dewasa
dan 26% sampai 95% dari korban anak-anak yang telah dievaluasi setelah
gempa bumi. Alih-alih menjadi acara dibatasi dengan titik akhir yang ditetapkan,
gempa bumi cenderung menghasilkan serangkaian peristiwa yang terus
mempengaruhi kehidupan masyarakat selama waktu yang lama.