Whenever there is an unusual security escalation or a military operation in the south of Israel near Gaza, the residents of the area have often reported of suffering from unusual mental stress. Now there is scientific proof of this. Smartwatches given to the residents of the south during the "Guardian of the Walls" operation, over two years ago, as part of a study by Tel Aviv University, proved that they suffered greater physiological and psychological damage than that suffered by Israelis living in other areas.
The study shows that the residents of the southern district experienced changes in each of the objective indicators monitored: the time they spent looking at the mobile phone screen increased, the number of steps decreased, the average heart rate increased, the time without movement increased, the time awake during sleep increased, and the time to fall asleep was delayed. At the same time, a deterioration was observed in all the subjective indices reported by the participants: the mood worsened, the stress level increased, the number of social gatherings decreased, the period of time devoted to sports shortened, the duration of sleep shortened, and the quality of sleep worsened.
The grim reality of the #Gaza envelope: increase in population use of mental first aid centers. There has been a dramatic increase over the past 7 months in a number of referrals to the mental and trauma health centers in Gaza envelope, most of them in Sderot. #Israel pic.twitter.com/fhiY17UCoc
ā Eli Dror (@edrormba) August 27, 2019
In May 2021, researchers managed to recruit 954 Israelis and equip them with smartwatches. When the IDF operation began, later in May of that year, the smartwatches already measured its effect. Thus, for example, the heart rate of one of the subjects, which was 50 beats per minute in a normal state, jumped to 76 beats per minute as soon as an alarm sounded, and returned to normal only after 20 minutes.
The Mental Health Crisis In The Middle East (clip) #MentalHealth #Crisis #Health #Mental #PTSD #Trauma #War #Invasions #Raids #Bombs #Bombing #WarCrimes #USA #America #American #Israel #MiddleEast #Palestine #Iraq #Palestinians #Syria #Lebanon https://t.co/3haPOWjFrn
ā Dolores Peers (dee) #FreePalestine, MMT š¹ (@dee4peace) June 10, 2023
Prof. Erez Shmueli, one of the leaders of the research, says: "It is good to see that immediately after the end of the operation, the citizens returned to normal, but it is difficult to know how they were affected clinically. During a war, many aspects of life are significantly affected. The state needs to know what happens to its citizens during the war and provide special support to groups that are more prone to harm. In a follow-up study, certain individuals were significantly harmed during the war and did not return to normal after it ended. We hypothesize that quick and targeted support for these people may prevent the development of post-traumatic stress syndrome."
Podcast 13#: How to prepare to an Unforeseen Disaster Prof. Bruria Adini https://t.co/1k5vl5cpqj pic.twitter.com/hBfspL28nC
ā TaskilU ×Ŗש×××× (@TaskilU) February 19, 2023
Prof. Bruria Adini, Head of the Emergency and Disaster Management Department at the Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University, added: "Stress can exacerbate symptoms of anxiety, depression, nervousness, and restlessness. This does not mean that everyone who experiences security stress will develop the same symptoms. Such a period can cause an increase In stress, but also help to empower the person."
