In May, 2016, Fort McMurray, Alberta, was devastated by a ragingwildfire that destroyed over 2500 homes and businesses, and forcedthe evacuation of thousands of residents. Community members beganto return home in June; however, many did not have a house to goback to. There were no deaths as a direct result of the wildfire,however, two young people lost their lives in a devastating head oncollision as they fled the city.
The evacuation of Fort McMurray wasterrifying for some, due to a large, intense and unpredictablefire, that came very close to the city’s core. For a look at whatit was like for some as they drove out of the city, please see:
http://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/articles/alberta-wildfires-summed-up-in-10-terrifying-tweets/67304
(please note that viewing this videois not mandatory—if you have trouble with the link, or feeluncomfortable about watching the clip, please just move on andanswer the question without—viewing is not necessary)
As stated above, some residents losttheir homes or businesses to fire; others had cleanup anddecontamination processes to go through. Homes in fire ridden areassmell badly due to smoke, and other reasons, including mouldformation and rotting food.
In his model of allostatic load, Dr. Bruce McEwen talks aboutthe impact of trauma (amongst a number of other factors) on thewear and tear of the physiological stress responsesystem.  Using his framework, and the Alberta wildfirescenario (you may speak generally, or use a specific case studythat you found online or made up using the fire scenario), explainand demonstrate how such a trauma might possibly influence one’sphysiological response and susceptibility to developing PTSD (makesure to explain the concepts of allostatic load/overload andincorporate the DSM definition of PTSD in the context of youranswer). Be sure to also address previous factors in a person’slife that might influence the response (apply these factors in thecontext of the model, and in your example).
Then, explain how the culmination of these incidents (coupledwith other relevant factors in your scenario) might influence one’sresponse (physical and psychological) to a subsequent traumaticexperience and/or social and environmental stressors that may occurafter the fire, such as a chronic issue that might occur withinone’s family or in the workplace. Again, be sure to use McEwen’smodel in your answer, demonstrating an understanding of hisideas.
