Adrenaline sends a surge of blood and energy throughout the body, allowing it to fight or run away. When the immediate threat is over, cortisol kicks in. This hormone calms the system down. But for some people, especially those who have experienced extreme trauma, the stress response doesn't turn off properly. The brain stays on full alert.
Traumatic memories crowd out everyday thoughts.
Sleep is disrupted, and brain cells can be damaged. These are the symptoms many people in Kosovo will live with for the rest of their lives. Two new studies published in the Aug. 2 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association found that more than 40 percent of ethnic Albanians showed signs of psychiatric illness as a result of the war. And 17 percent of Albanians polled had symptoms typical of post-traumatic stress disorder. The reports, which were based on a survey of 1,358 ethnic Albanians aged 15 and older, found that about two thirds of respondents were in a combat situation and a similar percentage had been deprived of food or water during the war.