The psychological toll of California’s catastrophic fires

Entire neighborhoods in Southern California have been destroyed by deadly wildfires, displacing communities that don’t know what — if anything — they’ll have to return to.
The big picture: Researchers have linked wildfires to long-lasting anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder in survivors, in addition to the well-documented physical toll.
Los Angeles families calling into Parents Anonymous’ California Parent & Youth Helpline have been expressing extreme overwhelm this week, said Lisa Pion-Berlin, CEO of Parents Anonymous.
For those whose houses were destroyed, “it’s not just the things in the building you lost, you lost a home,” she said. “And that’s a safe place where you’re raising a family, where you go to relax, where you go to cry, where you go to celebrate, where you have birthday parties.”
“A home is much more than a building, a home is part of your heart, and that’s been totally cut out.”