In Stressful Wake of Fukushima Disaster, Japan Now Dealing With ‘Atomic Divorce’
A worker checks radiation levels on a bus at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Precautions in the region against radiation are still widespread, despite uncertainty over the risks. (PHOTO: REUTERS/Itsuo Inouye/Pool)
It’s been almost two years since the massive earthquake and tsunami that devastated northern Japan, and caused one of the world’s worst nuclear accidents.
The reactor at Fukushima went into a triple melt-down and radiation contaminated much of the surrounding area.
The radiation risk persists, leaving people in the region in a constant state of anxiety and stress.
One psychologist says suicide, depression, alcoholism, gambling and domestic abuse are all up in the region.
The stress has even created a new phenomenon: “genpatsu rikon,” or “atomic divorce,” says Abigail Haworth.
Haworth wrote a piece on the issues for the magazine of Britain’s Observer newspaper.
“One psychologist I spoke to said she was basically overwhelmed,” says Haworth
There’s also a perception of discrimination against people from the region, who are perceived as ‘tainted.’
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