RE: Tennessean Story Vs. Gulf Syndrome

["Lamothe, Emelie" <lamothee@aecl.ca>]

	Dov Brickner wrote" 

	"[...] besides the Gulf Syndrome there
	are many other controversial entities like Chronic Fatigue Syndrome,
	Multiple Chemical Sensitivities , Sick Building Sickness/Syndrome
etc.
	Although the symptoms may vary a little between the "syndromes",
they all
	share one character in common : They are based on complaints alone -
no
	single measureable sign that can be detected by a thermometer,
manometer,
	pulsemeter or any other laboratory tool.
	I am reluctunt to call these phenomena "Diseases", nor to relate to
	"stress". Psychological\emotional stress do have measurable effects:
It
	raises heart-rate and blood pressure as well as some hormone levels
in blood. 
	I don't know what these people are suffering from, certainly it is
not a
	radiation effect."

________________________


I don't know whether to agree or disagree with you.  Certainly, I agree with
the concept that the effects are most likely not associated with dose.  And
I agree that it is hard to measure the cause and the effect. 

Most people are familiar with the alleged symptoms of exposure to high
radiation doses and may interpret the appearance of any such symptom as
indicating they had received an exposure.  For some individuals, the ensuing
worry and anxiety can trigger a series of real physical responses.  The
extent of the response seems to be dependent on the individuals ability to
cope.

In examining the impact of stress and anxiety, what seems to be lacking are
appropriate coping skills.  These do not come naturally to most people.  If
the environment is viewed as beyond one's control, this "failure" (often
seen as personal) can lead to chronic apathy, as seems to be the case at
Chernobyl. From a Three Mile Island study of coping skills, it was found
that the most effective style for managing stress was to learn to manage
emotions.  

Some of the more common physical reactions to stress and anxiety include:  
*	nausea and vomiting
*	constipation or diarrhea
*	aches and pains like headaches, backaches, stomach aches 
*	muscle tremors and twitches
*	chest pain
*	difficulty breathing 
*	elevated BP and rapid heart rate 
*	shock symptoms
*	non-specific bodily complaints
*	sudden sweating and/or heart palpitations
*	changes in sleep patterns appetite, and/or interest in sex
*	easily startled by noises or unexpected touch
*	more susceptible to colds and illnesses

The gamut of emotional responses is wide and far reaching and can lead to
real physical ailments (e.g. ulcers, heart disease, poor health from not
taking care of oneself, etc.).  The real difficulty lies in that some
reactions may appear totally unrelated.  Some reactions may appear
immediately.  Some reactions may appear months later.  Some may be due to an
underlying physical ailment requiring medical evaluation and not to recent
events. Diagnosis can be complicated and the underlying physical ailment, if
any, must be treated.  

People who are involved in emergency response or involved in war activities
such as the Gulf War, are at risk for secondary traumatization.  Known by
various names -- critical incident stress (CIS), compassion fatigue, battle
fatigue, chronic environmental stress disorder, secondary or vicarious
traumatization and "burn out", the symptoms are usually less severe than the
stress and anxiety symptoms experienced by the members of the public who are
not directly involved.  This is very common and in fact quite normal.
Critical incident stress is a well-documented phenomena.  The International
Critical Incident Stress Foundation can provide quite a bit of information
of the stress reactions associated with traumatic experiences.  I would
disagree with anyone who claims that war and radiological accidents are not
traumatic experiences.

With respect to sick building syndrome and Multiple Chemical Sensitivities,
based on my observations of a handful of people suffering from these
effects, there seems to be definite physical triggers that will cause a
specific reaction (e.g. hives, breathing difficulties, nausea and vomiting,
etc.).  Some of these people do not or did not live stressful lives nor are
they particularly anxious nor did they suffer any previous allergies.  For
some reason, the whole body chemistry has been thrown off balance. 

When it comes to the human body and the mind's ability to cope and affect
our physical health, we mere humans have far to go in fully understanding
these issues.

Emelie Lamothe
lamothee@aecl.ca


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