Mental distress and psychological disorders related to COVID-19 mandatory quarantine

Background:Restrictions that were enforced from COVID-19 have affected many people’s lifestyles and ability to earn. They caused a distress that even added to the war stress that the Syrian population has encountered for the last 9 years. This study aims to assess this distress and the major concerns of the people related to COVID-19.Methods:Online questionnaires were distributed using SPTSS, K10, and MSPSS were used with other demographic, war- and COVID-19-related questions that were taken from The (CRISIS) V0.1 Adult Self-Report Baseline Form.Results:Our sample included 5588 with the mean age of 26.84 ± 7.815 years. Of those, only one was a confirmed COVID-19 case. Over 42.7% had two or more positive PTSD symptoms, 42.6% had moderate or severe mental disorder, but only 14.9% had low social support. Higher PTSD and K10 scores overall were seen in females and with most of war variables (P<0.05). Relationship with partner were negatively affected in most and distress from the declined ability to work and provide food were the most prominent.Conclusions:The indirect effect of COVID-19 is far more than that of the pathogen itself. Reduced ability to earn and to provide food was the main concerns. Relationships deteriorated mainly in participants with high K10 and PTSD scores who also felt more symptoms and used more hypnotics in the last 4 weeks. Smoking changes were not related to K10 and PTSD. Social support played a role in reducing stress, but with the relationships being affected, lower support was seen.

Unaccompanied Minors: Worldwide Research Perspectives

Due to the globalisation of the economy, migratory flows have increased significantly. Unaccompanied foreign minors have become a growing problem in recent years. The objective of this study is to make an analysis from a bibliometric point of view and to identify the main research trends concerning this topic by clusters identification. It has been observed that, above all, there are two main subjects that dominate the scientific literature in this field, the social sciences and medicine. The first one is the clearest in terms of legal and political implications, but the second one is related to the field of determining the age of minors by means of diagnostic tests. As to clusters, the following have been identified: First as a refugee–asylum seeker, second as a refugees–psychology, third as migration, fourth as age determination, and fifth as health care. Finally, the following temporal evolution of the issues dealt with in relation to unaccompanied minors has been observed: War, stress, migration, immigration, risk factors, health, legal aspects and, more recently, vaccination or age determination.

Razine anksioznosti kod prognanika i povratnika

This study aimed to examine the impact of war stress on some aspects of anxiety in refugees and returnees.The subjects were refugees from Eastern Slavonia (N=80) and returnees from the Dalmatian hinterland (N=80), whereas the citizens of the city of Split (N=81), who have been indirectly exposed to the war events, served as the control group.The subjects were given Endler's Multidimensional Anxiety Scales (EMAS-S and EMAS-T) that are designed to measure the state anxiety and the trait anxiety in usual, everyday situations and in situations of social evaluation. In addition, two scales were administered that were constructed for assessment of the perception of threatening aspects of war and of the exposure to war related stress (Gregov et al., 1995).The results showed that the anxiety level was higher in the returnees than the refugees, while the control group had the lowest degree of both state and the trait anxiety. This finding is in accordance with the hypothesis that the stress experienced during the refugee period and in the new situation of the return would have cumulative effects which could be manifested in short-term consequences (increased level of state anxiety and perceived threat of some war aspects) and in longterm consequences (increased level of trait anxiety).

Clinical Social Work

The soldiers from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as large numbers of nonwounded soldiers, experience post-traumatic stress disorder. Further, the families, groups, and communities from which all U.S. service men and women come, during and after these and other wars, have experienced their own war-related trauma. Stories on the nightly news reveal soldier reaction to combat stress, including intrusive memories, racing thoughts, nightmares, troubled sleep, irritability, anxiety, fear, isolation, depression anger, poor concentration, hyper- or hypovigilance, exaggerated responses, and increased alcohol and other drug abuse. The stories of family, friends, and community are filled with war stress symptoms of their own. Charged with keeping their families together, bills paid, jobs afloat, children safe and growing, families may experience a drop in income, loneliness and isolation, long deployments, multiple last minute combat redeployment and duty extensions, anger, frustration, depression, increased alcohol and other drug abuse, loss of trust, fear, increase in domestic violence, and school disruption. Not all of the change for family is negative as some spouses and children who are left behind find they have new skills and new independence with which to negotiate their world. The returning soldier's response to this newfound independence and skill may require the services of the clinical social worker.

PSYCHOSOCIAL CONSEQUENCES OF COMBAT AND OPERATIONAL STRESS

Almost 3% of the Polish Armed Forces is serving abroad. The service abroad is very much different from that in Poland and may result in many specific psychological, health and social costs. The article describes the evolution of opinions regarding war stress and presents the typical stress factors of soldiers, including those from the battlefield. The article is also a review of the results of Polish research regarding the psychological and health costs of military service under operational and battle conditions.

Vulnerability and Resilience in a Group Intervention with Hospital Personnel during Exposure to Extreme and Prolonged War Stress

The current study presents a pilot demonstration of a new therapeutic procedure to mitigate symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The pilot took place during the Second Lebanon War. Vulnerability and resilience statements, as well as post-traumatic symptoms, were measured among special army administrative staff (SAAS) who worked in a hospital setting during extreme and prolonged war stress. All 13 soldiers in the unit studied participated in seven group therapy intervention sessions. It was hypothesized that shifting the focus of therapeutic intervention from the scenes of the events to the personal and professional narratives of preparing for the event would change the content of the soldiers’ narratives. It was believed that subtracting the number of positive statements from the number of negative statements would yield increasingly higher “resilience scores” during and after the war. It also was believed that such a change would be reflected in reduction of post-traumatic symptoms. As expected, the participants showed a decrease in vulnerability and an increase in resilience contents, as well as a decrease in traumatic symptoms during and after the war. These findings may reflect the effects of the ceasefire, the mutually supportive attitude of the participants, and the therapeutic interventions.