Katrina’s Emotional Aftermath Causing “Soaring” Substance Abuse, Grief, Depression in New Orleans…

Katrina’s Emotional Aftermath Causing “Soaring” Substance Abuse, Grief, Depression in New Orleans…

Official plans for the commemoration of Hurricane Katrina's one-year anniversary include everything from a New Orleans jazz "funeral" procession led by Lt. Gen. Russel Honore to a concert featuring native sons Wynton Marsalis and Dr. John. There are the expected monument dedications, a series of candlelight vigils and prayer services, wreath-layings by all the members of the city council--as well as the rather more unexpected "Sultans of Swing" Talent Search at Harrah's casino and an Emeril's cooking demonstration for kids. This being New Orleans, there is even a "reunion festival" of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered residents who want to demonstrate their commitment "to helping rebuild the city."

But amidst the sobriety and the hoopla, the state-funded Central City Mental Health Center has chosen a more practical way to mark the anniversary of the nation's biggest natural disaster--one that may well be the most fitting. Free testing for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will be conducted all day on Aug. 29, punctuated by a lunch at which overburdened staff members will reminisce about the tumultuous year that was.

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