부산대학교 도서관

Since the Great East Japan Earthquake, Hanamaki Hospital has been conducting support activities in the Kamaishi area. The damage to the area was massive, with more than 2,400 people dead or missing, and the survivors left behind have experienced severe bereavement. Many have had harsh experiences, such as witnessing firsthand the city being overwhelmed by the tsunami, seeing many dead bodies, and being swept away by the tsunami themselves. As a result, many suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), complicated grief, depression, and other mental illnesses. The present author was involved in support activities at the hospital from October 2011 to April 2012 and provided trauma treatment using eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) to five patients with PTSD and complicated grief. The PTSD in 4 patients nearly disappeared completely after 2 to 12 sessions (0.5 to 3 months). One person with complicated grief also experienced a significant reduction in both depression and PTSD symptoms after 12 sessions (3.5 months). EMDR was found to be effective in rapidly reducing symptoms of PTSD and complex grief and altering cognition among earthquake victims. This suggests that EMDR may be an effective therapeutic tool, even if the intervention is limited to a few months.