NYT/Reuters: September 11 Haunts New Yorkers in Big Ways and Small

[DeepModem Mom]

September 11 Haunts New Yorkers in Big Ways and Small
By REUTERS
Published: September 6, 2006

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Some people have nightmares, others fear tall buildings and others cringe at the sound of airplanes overhead.

Many New Yorkers suffer the psychological impact of the September 11 attacks, some adopting quirky new habits, others enduring full-blown post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, experts say....

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Calls to the city's leading mental health referral line LifeNet averaged 3,000 a month before the attacks. Now they run at a monthly average of 8,000, officials say....

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As many as 150,000 adults in the New York area were estimated to have suffered full-blown PTSD after the attacks. Probably an even greater number experienced partial symptoms, said Dr. Randall Marshall, director of Trauma Studies at the New York State Psychiatric Institute.

Most don't seek treatment. Their symptoms can include irritability, sleeplessness, anxiety, depression or loss of appetite, Marshall said. "It's a continuum of reactions. It isn't as if you have it or you're fine.''...

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-sept11-psychology.html