After more than a year of war, post-traumatic stress disorder among Israelis, particularly among young adults is soaring, according to research released by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev on Thursday.
While PTSD has become more widespread among Israelis after over a year of fighting Hamas and Hezbollah, the study said individuals ages 18-30 were particularly affected due to their high rate of military service, personal losses, and displacement from their homes.
“This is one of the groups that was most significantly affected,” said Dr. Stav Shapira, from the Department of Emergency Medicine at Ben-Gurion University and one of the study’s authors. “There is a high proportion of reserve service members, spouses of soldiers, victims of the war, and more. This war has exacerbated the challenges they already face.”
The study found that before the war, 25% of young people met the criteria for PTSD. After the war, this figure surged to 42%, and among those evacuated from their homes, the rate was even higher at 60%. Similar increases were noted in levels of depression and loneliness. Alarmingly, protective factors such as personal resilience and social support, which typically help individuals cope with distress, have significantly declined.