In Antarctica, the crew members’ isolation from home and confinement to the station have continuously been shown to contribute to mental health issues in humans (see Palinkas and Suedfeld 2008 for a review). The key stressors at such research stations include minimal privacy, boredom, sexual and emotional deprivation, artificial possibilities for social interaction, and reduced opportunity to escape or avoid interpersonal conflicts (Palinkas 1990). This results in fire arms – which are banned in Antarctica – being a necessity at Arctic stations. 1997), there are dangerous predators such as polar bears which contribute to the environment’s hostility (Norwegian Polar Institute 2005). 2007), and while the High Arctic climate is milder (Steel et al. Isolated research stations in both polar regions – Antarctica and the Arctic – qualify as extreme environments: Antarctica is the highest, coldest, windiest, and driest of all continents (Palinkas 1990) where evacuation is nigh impossible during the winter months (Grant et al. More such case studies should be conducted wherever possible.Įxtreme environments feature three core characteristics: a hazardous physical surrounding, a demanding mission goal, and limited communications with loved ones at home (Blair 1991, p. The intervention temporarily alleviated his depressive symptoms. Albert’s evacuation was medically warranted. We attempted an intervention using emotional freedom techniques (EFT) to help improve his symptoms. Crawfordian case analysis suggests that he felt more depressed than other team members at the station, and men of equal age and education in their home environment ( p < 001). His attempt at combing his life at home and his life at the station led to him feeling increasingly depressed. He missed his loved ones at home, and he felt he was cognitively declining due to intellectual deprival. Albert struggled to derive joy from his work at the station. The data collection occurred repeatedly during the mission, until his evacuation. Phenomenological interviews gave him room to relate his experience. We collected data on his mental health and his mood using the Symptom Checklist 90-Revised and the Profile of Mood States, and we assessed his cognitive functions with the Sustained Attention to Response Task and the Test of Everyday Attention. A 21-year-old man – Albert – developed severe psychological distress over the course of a winter expedition to the Polish Polar Station, Svalbard. Occasionally, these problems warrant evacuation of the afflicted individual but no in-depth insight into such a case has been given in modern times, until now. Psychological problems over the course of isolated missions in extreme environments are common, even with modern screening techniques.

Ghost exe life is strange