Plane Crashes: Survivors' Psychological Trauma Explained

Experiencing a traumatic event such as surviving a plane crash can result in symptoms of post-traumatic stress, but everybody experiences these symptoms differently, and scientists are not sure why. An airplane crashed in South Korea on Sunday, killing 179 of the 181 people on board, including all its passengers and four of six crew members. The passenger plane burst into flames after skidding off a runway into a wall at an airport after the plane's landing gear apparently failed to deploy, shortly after the pilot received a warning of a bird strike. Two flight attendants were rescued from the back of the aircraft and are being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

What Is PTSD?

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition caused by experiencing stressful, frightening or distressing events, according to the United Kingdom's National Health Service. Symptoms may include nightmares and flashbacks to the event, trouble sleeping and feelings of isolation, irritability and guilt. There are two types: PTSD and complex PTSD, the latter of which is caused by repeated or prolonged trauma such as a neglectful childhood or abusive relationship. PTSD can be treated with antidepressants and therapy, and symptoms can get better with time. Approximately 1 in 3 people who experience trauma will go on to develop PTSD, and scientists are unsure why some people are more affected than others.

What Happens to People Who Survive Plane Crashes?

Plane crash survivors have not been the subject of many scientific studies, mainly because plane crashes tend to kill everyone on board. However, some do exist—such as a study from 2015 on the likelihood of PTSD and depression among survivors of a plane crash in the Netherlands. That study found that, among 121 adult survivors interviewed just months after the 2009 crash, the degree of mental health symptoms experienced by the survivors was not related to the severity of their physical injuries. Another 2015 study, this time on roughly 100 people who survived an emergency airplane landing, found that women and less educated people were more likely to experience more severe symptoms of post-traumatic stress, such as intrusive memories, anxiety and unease. The study also found that symptoms changed considerably in the first four months after the event and gradually became less severe or more predictable over the following 19 years. A study from 2017 looked at the bereaved family members of 298 passengers killed in a plane crash in Ukraine. They found that those who experienced more psychiatric symptoms—such as PTSD, depression and prolonged grief—were more likely also to experience a sense of "unrealness," defined as a sense that a loss feels surreal, as if it did not happen, despite rationally knowing that it did. This sense of "unrealness," the study authors wrote, suggested that these people struggled to fit the traumatic loss into their own stories, and so felt more emotional shock when reminded of it. Studies on military personnel who survived plane crashes from the 1970s to 1990s found that the events led to psychological symptoms in survivors, their spouses, squadron members, emergency responders and witnesses alike. Of those people, 68 percent experienced intrusive thoughts about the accident, 40 percent experienced depression and anxiety, and 51 percent experienced PTSD symptoms afterward. Other symptoms experienced by military survivors of plane crashes include uncontrollable anxiety or rage, sleep problems, flashbacks, physical illness, mood swings, paranoia, nightmares and more.

Finding Hope After Traumatic Situations

These distressing symptoms linked to tragedy are not inevitable. Studies have shown that people who feel they have a purpose in life and can find meaning from difficult experiences may be able to recover more easily from traumas. That was the conclusion of a 2013 study that found participants who reported a greater feeling of purpose in life emotionally recovered better after they were shown disturbing images. Meaningfulness and purpose in life have also been linked to lower overall risk of depression, anxiety and stress in many studies and several meta-analyses. Research, such as on the COVID-19 pandemic, has shown that some people find that traumatic experiences can lead to positive personal growth in the long term. Is there a health problem that's worrying you? Do you have a question about PTSD? Let us know via health@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice and your story could be featured in Newsweek.

References

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