About 60% of the nova survivors experience severe post-traumatic symptoms

A study carried out at the School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Haifa with the “Safe Heart” association, which helps the victims of the terrorist acts at parties surrounding Gaza on the seventh of October, reveals a bleak picture of the mental state of some of the survivors, about a year after the outbreak of the war.In the study, led by Prof. Roi Salomon, one of the founders of the association, and Prof. Roi Admon, both neuroscientists from the University of Haifa, took part in more than a thousand of the survivors of the parties, who in the past year underwent a series of interviews, cognitive and physiological tests, as well as brain scans.

 

The research focuses on the processing of the trauma of the survivors under second-consciousness substances and is still ongoing. In the first phase, the researchers examined how psychoactive substances that survivors took at parties affected coping with the trauma in the initial phase. Contemporary findings, concerning the condition of the survivors at this time, testify to the extent of the mass disaster – out of more than 550 survivors who responded to the PCL questionnaire, a tool for diagnosing post-traumatic symptoms, it was found that approximately 60 percent suffered from severe post-traumatic symptoms, which exceeded the clinical threshold. The survivors responded to the questionnaire in the time period between May and October 2024, about six months after the Shiva attack in October, a phase in which it is possible to identify post-traumatic symptoms, which in many cases appear several months after the traumatic event.

The numbers should worry the decision makers

Prof. Salomon says that the numbers obtained are very high, and should worry all the decision makers in the country. “Often, among people who experience a traumatic event, reactions such as high arousal or difficulty sleeping arise in the immediate term. However, usually after months the trauma subsides and the symptoms decrease. According to the research findings, for a large number of survivors the situation is completely different and has not improved in the months since the outbreak the war”. According to him, the numbers are high even compared to other severe events. “It is true that we do not have exact numbers, but if we look at severe traumatic events such as wars and terrorist attacks, the percentage of people suffering from post-traumatic stress is usually only between 10 and 15 percent, the gap is huge.”

“The decision-makers need to realize that if we want the people to recover, we need to bring the country to a safe state, and invest in long-term treatment. This also directly affects the state’s expenses.”

Prof. Roy Salomon, Haifa University

According to Prof. Salomon, it can be assumed that these data reflect the fact that the state of emergency in the country is not over yet, which affects the survivors’ ability to process the trauma. “We are not in a place where a person can begin to let go of the fear of trauma. The abductees are still in Gaza, the war is still going on in some arenas, there are still alarms. Recovery from trauma begins when the patient is in a safe situation, whose body and mind receive the message that they can get out of the constant state of threat and danger. In reality The current situation in Israel is very complex.”

 

He adds that the findings are also significant with regard to the treatment of survivors. “The decision-makers need to realize that if we want the people to recover, we need to bring the country to a safe state, and invest in long-term care and care for the survivors. At the end of the day, this also directly affects the state’s expenses. The cost of a person who suffers chronically from post-traumatic stress disorder, beyond the terrible suffering that he and his family are experiencing, very high.”

However, Prof. Salomon believes that once the situation in the country calms down and the war ends, the treatment of the survivors will be more effective, and their situation may change and improve.