Digging a little into the mental health impacts of the #dwhoilspill in this week's #dwhstories. Mental health was acutely affected by the spill. Increased depression and anxiety were documented in the wake of the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska, and it was no different in the Gulf.
First, let's contrast disasters of technology with natural disasters. When natural disasters strike, they tend to bring people together, knitting a community more tightly as neighbors help neighbors recover and rebuild, creating what is known as a therapeutic community.
We are all powerless in the face of God and nature, and this knowledge brings with it a certain comfort— there was nothing we could do to prevent it, and there is nothing we can do but rebuild.
But technological disasters are different altogether, leading to corrosive communities, as people seek someone to blame for the disaster. Instead of bringing people closer together, technological disasters can tear at the very fabric of society and culture.
There is no solace in knowing that the disaster was inevitable— in fact, these disasters are almost always the result of human error, and preventable.
The oil spill took a heavy toll on communities and the mental health of Gulf Coast residents, especially those in the areas most affected by the spill, either economically (e.g., fishing communities) and those areas most environmentally impacted by oiled shorelines.
Mental health impacts varied depending on the jobs people had, how closely they identified with the place where they lived and the coastal culture, and how many disasters they had previously lived through (e.g., Hurricane Katrina).
The @MSALSeaGrant summarized mental health effects by state, finding that in Louisiana, some residents experienced symptoms of anxiety, depression and post traumatic stress resulting from disruption to work, school and social lives. preview.tinyurl.com/vc79flf
In general, people whose livelihoods were tied to coastal resources were the most likely to experience mental health effects, as were their children. Many were already struggling financially before the spill, and lacked access to support programs both before and after the spill.
In Florida, where much less oil reached the shore, some coastal residents, especially those who experienced economic losses, experienced anxiety and depression.
During the first months after the spill, researchers conducted informal focus groups in a number of communities and found that residents also reported higher levels of drug and alcohol use, domestic violence and harsh treatment of children.
Researchers conducted a study of 8968 spill workers and 2225 non-workers and found that clean up workers who were exposed to high amounts of hydrocarbons, also experienced rates of depression and PTSD at higher rates than the general population.
This suggests that mental health services are imperative for worker before, during and after potentially high-stress and/or traumatic events. tinyurl.com/u8yubge
Here is a great summary of the literature related to mental health impacts of the spill to learn more.
tinyurl.com/ttvdwsc
tinyurl.com/ttvdwsc
