When Disaster Strikes, Mental Health Becomes the Hidden Crisis: What One Researcher Discovered

Natural disasters don't just destroy buildings—they create invisible wounds that can trap entire communities in cycles of trauma and economic decline for years. Dr. Meri Davlasheridze discovered this firsthand when she gave birth during Hurricane Harvey in 2017, an experience that transformed her understanding of how disasters affect mental health and recovery.

How Did Hurricane Harvey Change One Researcher's Perspective?

Davlasheridze, an associate professor of environmental and hazard economics at Texas A&M University at Galveston, was scheduled to deliver her high-risk pregnancy on August 28, 2017. When Hurricane Harvey made landfall on August 25, her family evacuated to a League City hotel near the hospital. What followed was a surreal experience of giving birth during one of the most devastating natural disasters in U.S. history.

"My dissertation and research were on hurricanes and flood impacts, and I never imagined I would experience them firsthand," Davlasheridze said. "That's when you realize just how much suffering and distress people go through."

The family faced multiple challenges during the storm. Hotels stopped preparing meals, her husband scoured gas stations for crackers and supplies, and her parents survived on packets of oatmeal. The hospital had canceled all non-critical procedures, but made an exception for Davlasheridze's high-risk delivery when her doctor managed to reach the facility despite flooded streets.

What Creates the Hidden Mental Health Crisis After Disasters?

Davlasheridze's research has uncovered a devastating pattern: psychological trauma and financial strain feed into each other after disasters, creating a self-perpetuating cycle that slows recovery and destabilizes entire economic regions. Her studies of Hurricane Katrina's aftermath revealed the scope of this hidden crisis.

More than eight years after Katrina struck in 2005, New Orleans had suffered a staggering 33% gross regional product loss from the out-migration of skilled workers alone. Davlasheridze reached this number by creating a simulation of what the city's economy would have looked like without the hurricane, then comparing it to the actual recorded loss of skilled workers.

The mental health impacts that drive this economic devastation include several key conditions:

• Depression: Persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness that can last for years after the initial disaster
• Anxiety: Ongoing worry and fear about future disasters or daily life challenges that developed during the crisis
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD): Severe psychological reactions to the traumatic experiences during and after the disaster

How Do Researchers Measure These Invisible Effects?

To scientifically link mental health impacts to natural disasters, Davlasheridze uses econometric models—statistical tools that help researchers analyze complex relationships between social, economic, and environmental factors. These models allow scientists to isolate the specific effects of disasters on mental health while accounting for other factors that might influence psychological well-being.

"For us to isolate the effects of disasters on mental health, we have to make sure there are no omitted factors that also affect mental health," she explained. "Then we can credibly claim causality."

This research approach helps reveal how the physical scars of natural disasters may fade over time, but the invisible scars of trauma become part of everyday life for survivors. Depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder represent residual mental health impacts that can severely hamper post-disaster recovery efforts.

Davlasheridze's personal experience during Hurricane Harvey, combined with her academic expertise, continues to fuel her research into improving post-disaster recovery. Her work highlights how few people consider the long-term burden that natural disasters inflict on a community's mental health and the drastic economic impact that follows—a gap in understanding that her research aims to fill.