UCLA Health has an expert available to discuss ways to cope with the stress, trauma and psychological implications of the California wildfires. He can also speak to stress and anxiety experienced by firefighters and first responders. 

Emanuel Maidenberg is an associate clinical professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at the Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA. His research and practice focus on coping with stress and anxiety caused by natural disasters, mass shootings and terrorism. He can offer tips on how to talk to children and cope with the stress of living in an area considered to be at risk for wildfires. He can also discuss the trauma that may occur from being evacuated, losing your home and being separated from pets and other belongings for an extended period of time. Dr. Maidenberg can provide further insight into the effect of the wildfires on the firefighters battling them.