Nepal, Aug. 29 -- Rescue and search operations are ongoing following devastating flash floods along the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli river system, but mental health professionals warn that the crisis is only just beginning.

In the days and weeks ahead lies the risk of deeper psychological vulnerabilities taking hold as survivors begin to fully comprehend the scale of what happened. Among them lies the risk of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

When an entire village changes like this, people become anchored to old memories, wondering when, or whether, their village will ever return to what it was, and what will happen next. The absence of their culture, their norms and values, everything embedded in that place makes this disaster particu...