On 11 March 2011, Japan was struck by a massive earthquake and tsunami. There were a number of hospitals in the disaster-affected area, including some with psychiatric and children’s wards. Since all utilities were completely cut off for several days, children in the hospital had no access to information about the disaster. Therefore, they lacked a sense of the gravity of the situation and did not show any signs of panic.

In this article, the author sought to raise awareness of and discuss ways to effectively address contextual challenges faced by mental health workers who provide therapeutic services to child rape survivors in war-affected regions, in general, and in the cultural context of the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in particular, where rape is considered a sexual taboo, causing or amplifying attachment issues for survivors. A qualitative analysis of current literature review and therapeutic practice has been conducted in this article.

Clinical psychologist and endowed professor Trudy Mooren of the ARQ National Psychotrauma Centre, highlights the role of parents and parenting to protect and support vulnerable children and families in this crisis- as they play such a key role in the protection and (sense of) safety of their children. What do vulnerable parents need to be supportive parents in these days?

Suicide and suicidal behaviors represent a leading cause of morbidity and mortality during adolescence. While several lines of evidence suggest that suicidal behaviors are associated with risky decisions and deficient cognitive control in laboratory tasks in adults, comparatively less is known about adolescents. Here, we systematically reviewed the literature on the association between these neurocognitive variables and adolescent suicidal behaviors.