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Did recreational drug and alcohol use affect the mental health of Nova festival survivors?

Nova festival memorial site | Photo: Dani Machlis

Participants of the Nova music festival became victims of the October 7 terrorist attacks and were forced to react quickly to the massacre that took place in and around the party compound. Attendees had to run and hide for long periods of time to protect their lives, while a significant proportion of the participants were under the influence of drugs and alcohol. A study conducted by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in collaboration with Sheba Medical Center found that alcohol, which is defined as a legal substance, had the strongest and most damaging effect on the stress response to the event. The findings were published in the the journal World Psychiatry.

In addition to feeling euphoric, liberated, and uninhibited when using drugs and alcohol at parties, alcohol and drug consumption affects cognitive and brain functions. Effects range from heightened anxiety and impaired motor coordination to alterations in memory and emotional processing. How do these affect individuals’ reactions during and after a traumatic event? Research groups led by Prof. Hagit Cohen from the Faculty of Health Sciences at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Dr. Nitza Nakash from Sheba Medical Center examined this question, focusing on the effect of alcohol and drug consumption on mental health after the event.

Prof. Hagit Cohen | Photo: Dani Machlis

A total of 232 Nova Festival survivors sought assistance at Sheba Medical Center and underwent clinical evaluation. Among them, 123 met criteria that ruled out additional traumas, such as serious physical injuries, loss of first-degree family members killed during the attack, and a history of mental disorders - including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The average age of the subjects was 28, 60.9% of whom were men. 71 individuals (57.7%) reported using psychoactive drugs at the festival. All participants completed several questionnaires assessing traumatic dissociation during the event, anxiety, acute stress response, and depression.

The results of the study showed that survivors who reported using drugs and alcohol during the party had significantly higher levels of anxiety, depression, and stress responses compared those who abstained. The findings also show that among all the substances consumed during the party, alcohol consumption (alone and in combination with other drugs) increased hyperarousal, anxiety, depression symptoms, and severe stress response more than any other substance, including those who did not use drugs at all. None of the other substances taken at the party caused such reactions.

In addition, alcohol consumption was linked to prolonged dissociative experiences during the traumatic event. Dissociation can disrupt the processing and integration of traumatic memories, which may delay recovery and increase the likelihood of developing post-traumatic disorders, as trauma-related memories may remain fragmented and unprocessed.

"It is possible that alcohol consumption before the attack interfered with cognitive, emotional and physiological processes,"Dr. Nakash explained. "These are necessary processes that make it possible to cope with the trauma. In this case, the traumatic event lasted for many hours, so it is possible that the survivors experienced a hangover, which could have increased their anxiety and traumatic stress."

The massacre at the Nova Party provides a unique opportunity to explore how pre-trauma alcohol and drug consumption affects mental health outcomes and post-traumatic response.

"In light of the widespread prevalence of alcohol consumption in social encounters and the increasing incidents of sexual assault, physical assault and traffic accidents, these findings are also of social and clinical interest that enable understanding of the biological process of response to traumatic experiences," Prof. Cohen concluded.

The research group included: Prof. Hagit Cohen and students Gal Levy and Yarden Dajarno from the Department of Psychology and the Faculty of Health Sciences at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Dr. Nitza Nakash, Prof. Yossi Zohar, student Tal Malka, Prof. Mark Weiser, and Prof. Raz Gross from Sheba Medical Center.

Nova festival memorial site | Photo: Dani Machlis Participants of the Nova music festival became victims of the October 7 terrorist attacks and were forced to react quickly to the massacre that took place in and around the party compound. Attendees had to run and hide for long periods of time to protect their lives, while a significant proportion of the participants were under the influence of drugs and alcohol. A study conducted by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in collaboration with Sheba Medical Center found that alcohol, which is defined as a legal substance, had the strongest and most damaging effect on the stress response to the event. The findings were published in the the journal World Psychiatry. In addition to feeling euphoric, liberated, and uninhibited when using drugs and alcohol at parties, alcohol and drug consumption affects cognitive and brain functions. Effects range from heightened anxiety and impaired motor coordination
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