Questions about PTSD

Dec 06, 2009 11:12

As usual, I'm in over my head. Does anyone know of a good internet resource on PTSD? Target population: former child soldiers.

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purejuice December 6 2009, 14:49:59 UTC
human rights watch is a good place for the overview. i know somebody who's doing a phd thesis on child soldiers, and i'll see if i can track her down.
http://www.hrw.org/en/search/apachesolr_search/liberia+child+soldiers

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purejuice December 6 2009, 15:20:30 UTC
van der kolk is the authority who has apparently determined that traumatic stress causes permanent neuro chemical changes. do not quote me cause that kind of stuff always changes.

but he is the man.

http://www.amazon.com/Traumatic-Stress-Effects-Overwhelming-Experience/dp/157230457X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260112645&sr=1-1#reader_157230457X

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purejuice December 6 2009, 15:48:11 UTC
cross cultural psychiatric practice is notoriously sketchy -- for example, all buddhists test depressed on western dipstick one-size-fits-all diagnostic interrogatories.

in the same way, crude PTSD diagnostics test for western concepts of trauma, high on the list survivor guilt (asian survivors of atomic blasts were alleged to suffer it by robert jay lifton, who pulled it out of his ass, but they do not; as neither do asian survivors of political famine and genocide. they're shame-based societies, not guilt, for starters, and one has a karma to survive or not, etc.) and other ideas which may not be part of trauma psychosis elsewhere.

arthur kleinman of harvard devised these eight questions to ask people of Other cultures about their medical condition.

http://erc.msh.org/aapi/tt11.html

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purejuice December 6 2009, 16:26:52 UTC
always understanding that bonafide child soldiers are not the american children targeted by "grief counsellors" who are traumatized by a bad hair day, and

always understanding that the UN has its own agendas, which are not always humane, i would talk to the rehab/recovery people there about teaching child soldiers, if that is your issue. they would give you the straight skinny esp. if you met them outside the office. (i see there's a bunch newly deployed to an RRR field office in Gbarnga, near Suacoco. they might be helpful to you.)

http://unmil.org/1content.asp?ccat=recovery&zdoc=1

The reintegration programme offered vocational skills training, formal education, apprenticeship, or employment opportunities. Reintegration efforts also included targeted interventions for Children Associated with the Fighting Forces (CAFFs), which were coordinated by UNICEF ( ... )

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