Perceptions of Stress, Coping, and Recovery One and Three Years After A Natural Disaster

Interview data not only supports but adds many useful insights to the findings of a longitudinal study of victims of a natural disaster. Forty-four of the 101 study participants on whom longitudinal standardized data were available were interviewed approximately one and three years following the 1980 volcanic eruption of Mount St. Helens in the state of Washington. The interview themes highlight the differences between presumptive and confirmed death bereavement, describe the unique stressors associated with one's loss when it is also a public event, and provide poignant accounts of the long and traumatic recoveries victims reported.