The recent devastating fires in Los Angeles underscore how disasters—whether fires, hurricanes, floods, or other climate events—can take a serious toll on mental health. Here in L.A., we’ve seen the impact not only in new cases of anxiety, PTSD, and depression but also in the worsening of pre-existing chronic psychiatric illnesses. The loss of stability, forced displacement, and sheer stress of the disaster has pushed even well-managed conditions into crisis. For those of us working in hospitals, this has meant more patients arriving in acute distress, with deteriorating psychosis, suicidal ideation, or mood instability triggered by disruption in care or housing. In outpatient settings, many of our colleagues have been struggling to help patients refill medications, access care, or maintain basic stability. These fires have been a sobering reminder that lives can be upended overnight. As we help our patients recover, whether from these fires or other disasters that might befall our communities, it’s worth remembering that we are also affected. It helps to check in on each other and make sure we’re taking care of ourselves, too.  

Victoria Hendrick, MD