Consequences of Stress Brought on by Natural Disasters

A few weeks ago I stumbled upon an article with a title that caught my attention. The article was explaining how post hurricane Harvey Texas is looking at the model of New Orleans’ Katrina recovery as what not to do. (I wish I had known then that I would want or need that article in the future, as of course I cannot seem to find it again.) But since the moment I read it I have been carrying a new weight of sadness for the victims of these huge natural disasters. The article explained how an entire generation of New Orleans’ children grew up no longer able to reach their pre-hurricane potential. This is because of the all-encompassing, life-altering amount of change and suffering that was a direct result of hurricane Katrina.

This week we were given a blog assignment to consider common stressors that impact a child’s life. Some major stressors could be neglect or abuse. Other examples of stressors include war, poverty, racism, natural disaster, isolation, hunger, noise, chaos, disease, environmental pollution, and violence. A quick reflection on myself and my immediate family members left me to realize just how blessed and privileged our lives have been. I immediately messaged my mom to express my gratitude. While there certainly was stress, and money was often tight, we never struggled in a way that I would say falls under any of those stressor categories. However the first thing that came to mind was a hurricane that came through while I was a teenager.

The hurricane damaged my (now) husband’s family’s house. We rode out the storm there at his house, watching and hoping the rising water would not come in. In the morning, as we ate breakfast splashing our feet in the water under the kitchen table, we could not quite understand how much would be impacted by some water damage. I recall going in to work that weekend, serving tables of customers their breakfast, and thinking to myself “how can they be so calm and happy when my mind is completely fearful for how much will change after this hurricane?” (And our hurricane was nothing compared to more recent ones.) In the weeks and years to come my now father-in-law would have a falling out with the brother he shared a duplex with. He would go into bankruptcy after paying to repair both sides of the duplex. Once the home was repaired they moved out of the duplex, thankfully still in our town (or my love story might not have been the same.) Their financial difficulties post-hurricane continued for nearly ten years. Thankfully my husband was old enough and supported enough to not suffer as a result. Further, it all would have been much worse had the entire town suffered rather than just a few houses. Reflecting on the situation immediately led me to that sense of sadness I am carrying for recent natural disaster victims, and for those “lost children” of hurricane Katrina (Reckdahl, 2015).

When a natural disaster strikes we all rush to help financially and with donations. Then, as weeks turn to months we outside of the situation are able to forget that the problem is still there. It is not until you really think about to that you realize the stressor of one natural disaster can bring on so many other stressors such as poverty, hunger, isolation, noise, chaos, disease, and violence. Reading the book Children of Katrina provided insight into exactly how one event creates an avalanche of stress, and the ways that impacts children. Consider the example of how mother Debra and eleven-year-old daughter Cierra were impacted. Caught in the traumatic experience of the storm within a hospital, a young child saw chaos, terror, pain, and even death. Then shuffled around shelters, eventually landing in a trailer home (provided by FEMA) in a city away from their home, isolated from all their family and friends who were also shuffled about. A mother left job-less and a child left without a school, it is easy to see how it would be difficult to meet Cierra’s basic needs in the coming months and years. But what kind of impact will this type of stress have on a child? Many studies are trying to answer just that question.

Lack of schooling is one major way children were impacted post-Katrina. According to information gathered by Fothergil and Peek, “In the two months following Katrina, as many as 138,000 students were not in school. Somewhere between 30,000 and 50,000 K-­ 12 students, most of them from Louisiana, missed virtually the entire 2005– 2006 academic year following Katrina. In the following school year, 2006– 2007, as many as 10,000 to 15,000 school-­ age children did not attend all or most days of school.” The impact of this is being seen now years later with Louisiana having the highest rates of unemployed and out of school young adults in the nation (Reckdahl, 2015). It is easy to see why these children are referred to as “lost.”

According to the US Department of Veterans Affairs page on PTSD, “Disasters can cause both mental and physical reactions. Being closer to the disaster and having weak social support can lead to worse recovery (Dept. of Veterans Affairs, 2015). On the other hand, being connected to others and being confident that you can handle the results of the disaster make mental health problems less likely.” The individual stories from the study The Children of Katrina demonstrate exactly that. Children such as Daniel (one feature of the book) who were at the lowest levels of poverty and without a social support system before the hurricane, were likely to end up suffering the most on a “declining trajectory” (Fothergill & Peek, 2015); while children such as Cierra, who suffered greatly, and previously struggled with poverty were lifted out of the initial post disaster difficulties onto an “equilibrium trajectory” (Fothergill & Peek, 2015).

The stress of experiencing a major natural disaster and all the stress that follows can cause PTSD and depression, both life-long mental struggles (Dept. of Veterans Affairs, 2015). One natural disaster can set a family on a completely different life course, often a more difficult one including shelter and food insecurity. Stress can cause less supportive or comforting parenting (Berger, 2015). All of these points can result in a child who is developmentally delayed, struggles to learn, and suffering through mental/emotional problems. Some will persevere, but not all. The individual stories shared in the sources I read are heartbreaking. I urge you to read some of them. I urge us all to remember these children in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico need help now and for years to come. I urge everyone to remember that you do not know anyone’s back story, and to not judge people based on miniscule moments of their lives. For all you know, they have suffered great stress and loss.

References

Berger, K. S. (2015). The Developing Person Through Childhood. New York: Worth Publishers.

Dept. of Veterans Affairs, U. (2015, September 5). Effects of Disasters: Risk and Resilience Factors. National Center for PTSD, p. Retrieved from: https://www.ptsd.va.gov/public/types/disasters/effects_of_disasters_risk_and_resilience_factors.asp.

Fothergill, A., & Peek, L. (2015). The Children of Katrina. Austin: University of Texas Press.

Reckdahl, K. (2015). The Lost Children of Katrina. The Atlantic, Retrieved from: https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/04/the-lost-children-of-katrina/389345/.