The Psychological Impact of Losing It All
Those hit by Ike must cope with the psychological impact of losing everything.
Sept. 16, 2008 — -- When Galveston, Texas, resident Martin Carroll returned home to assess the damage left by Hurricane Ike, what he discovered was devastating.
"It don't look good back at home," said Carroll in a phone call to his family. "We've lost everything."
Walking through the soaked floors in his home, Carroll showed ABC's "Good Morning America" how all of his belongings had been destroyed.
"Everything in here was just floating," said Carroll. "The washer and dryer were upside down."
Of the millions who fled from Ike's treacherous path, some will return to find little or nothing left of their lives before the storm -- a realization that could affect many psychologically, mental health professionals told ABCNews.com.
"For those who were leading a marginal existence economically and psychologically before [a storm hits and they lose everything], it's going to be a huge hit," said Charles Goodstein, a psychiatrist at New York University Langone Medical Center.
"It's a truly devastating feeling – a sense of being helpless and feeling homeless – that suddenly happens overnight," said Goodstein.
Hurricane Causes Grief
The range of emotions for those who return to devastated areas after natural disasters is wide, according to mental health counselor Jack Herrmann, who is the senior advisor for preparedness at the National Association of County and City Health Officials based in Washington, D.C.
Herrmann, who coordinated the mental health response for the Red Cross in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and most recently during the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav, said that while many people do become upset at the discovery that they've lost everything, others are resilient enough to spring into action and start rebuilding almost immediately.
"There is a common misperception that people are going to fall apart and they are going to have lifelong psychological consequences," said Herrmann. "But the reality is that most people who experience traumatic events are psychologically resilient."
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