June/July 2005 Tamilnadu, India
Tsunami Trauma Relief Project

Method:
During individual treatments, we collected data from the 210 villagers treated on presenting trauma symptoms, and on arousal, avoidance, and intrusion dimensions of post-traumatic stress as measured by items on an abbreviated IES-R (Impact of Events Scale-Revised). Post-treatment changes in presenting symptoms were measured immediately after the treatments. More importantly, changes in presenting trauma symptoms and indicators of post-traumatic stress as measured by the IES-R were measured four weeks after the treatments by trained local personnel to assess the effectiveness of the short-term psycho-physiological approach based on Somatic Experiencing (SE) employed in the treatments. 

Results:
Formal analysis of data is still underway. Initial results indicate significant and enduring symptom reduction in a majority of those treated. An impressive 73% of 463 presenting symptoms treated remained significantly improved four weeks after the treatments, with 27% somewhat better, 28% a lot better, and 18% completely resolved. Data on changes in dimensions of post-traumatic stress as measured by the abbreviated IES-R scale is currently being analyzed.