NEW ORLEANS - Problems with rebuilding homes after Hurricane Katrina is one of the many stressful things people are still dealing with, even four and a half years later.
And doctors say the stress is showing up not only in their clinics, but in the coroner's office as well.
But doctors say there are solutions to the problems.
The Orleans Parish Coroner's Office said his office is swamped since Hurricane Katrina.
"Actually we have more cases to autopsy now because of all the natural deaths because of, one, the people are still suffering post traumatic stress syndrome from the hurricane and, two, because of lack of medical care," said Coroner Dr. Frank Minyard.
And Dr. Minyard said to make matters worse, there is a post-Katrina staffing shortage.
"Before the storm, I had 35 employees. Today, I have nine. I mean, think about it. These people are doing the work of 35 people. We used to have eight pathologists. Now we got four," added Minyard.
Psychiatrists say a rise in deaths is a very common phenomenon after a major catastrophe, so this is not surprising following Katrina. In fact, more people get physically sick after a major event.
"We do know that there's an increase in visits to the doctors There's an increase in new medications that people were not on that now they are on, or increasing dose of medications, or adding other medications to other regimens that they have been taking," said LSU Health Sciences Center Psychiatrist, Dr. José Calderón-Abbo.
This is happening because blood pressure, blood sugar, blood clotting ability, cholesterol, and the immune system's infection fighting response, all increase during times of stress.
This is good for the short term to help you survive a dangerous situation. But when the stress is weeks and months and even years long, it makes you sick, leading to heart disease, strokes and diabetes. Now, add that to fewer doctors, clinics and hospitals, and bad everyday lifestyle issues.
"I'm not just talking psychological stress, but I'm talking inflammation in the body, for example, by the way we eat or the way we exercise or don't exercise, how we hurt ourselves in subtle ways, over booking, working way too many hours, not sleeping well," added Dr. Calderón-Abbo.
But now he and other local doctors and social workers are answering a need, with stress reduction and wellness support groups called The Mindful Living Program.
"Mindfulness is very simply moment to moment, nonjudgmental awareness to what's going on in our lives. So it turns out, a lot of this stress comes from our minds being in the future, worrying about things that are going to happen that haven't happened, or things in the past. And we spend very little time in the present moment in which things seem to be all right," said Dr. Calderón-Abbo.
Doctors also say people gain weight after disasters because our brains are hard wired to crave comfort foods high in fat and sugar.
The Stress Reduction and Wellness Support Groups go to www.mindfulpsychiatry.com or all 504-891-8808. Sessions last two hours a week for 8-10 weeks. The cost is on a sliding scale $35-$60 a session.
