An investigation conducted by Chengdu University's Psychological Health Education and Research Center in November 2008 showed that among 70 officials in the quake-hit areas, 23.7 percent suffered from bereavement and 85.1 percent had lost their property. Those whose work had grown more intense after the destruction accounted for 78.7 percent of the total, and 61.1 percent of the total said they needed psychological help.

Lu Qin, Director of the center, told China Youth Daily that an official in the quake-hit area said that he had been suffering from headaches, insomnia and feelings like those of a nervous breakdown. When the official then thought back to his work, he told himself to forego having a rest.

A female official in Sichuan Province's Department of Civil Affairs told Lu that her job entailed talking to victims and hearing their stories, though she did not witness the collapses or victims at the time. The work, she said, put her under significant stress and made her heart ache constantly, which led to sleeplessness and loss of appetite.

If such situations persist, Lu said, the physical and mental health of these officials will deteriorate.

Lu said local officials in the disaster zone bore twice the pressure of others coming from their work and personal lives. In the aftermath, the majority of authorities endeavored to work willingly on the front lines of the calamity. They buried their pain and restrained their feelings, which can only lead to psychological crisis.

"It is necessary to provide more care for those people who have shown symptoms of psychological problems and to increase people's knowledge about mental health, helping ordinary people know when they need psychological therapy," Lu said.

He called on the Central Government to set up long-term mental health clinics in the earthquake-stricken areas to help local people deal with their depression in the aftermath.

A World Health Organization (WHO) investigation found that around half a year after a disaster would be the time when various mental problems surface, and a year after will be a period when things get dangerous. Generally, experts expect some 20 percent of people to suffer from mental problems and require long-term psychological intervention.

"In the early period after the earthquake, when people were busy rescuing and surviving, psychological problems were not fully exposed," said Zhang Wei, Vice President of a Sichuan University hospital, in an article on xinhuanet.com. "But as time goes by, the early intense emotions are released gradually, and mental problems can occur."

"One of our surveys shows that over 5 percent of the people in the quake-hit areas, or 400,000 victims, will have problems to one degree or another. Those suffering psychological problems feel deep grief constantly and lack the feeling of safety. Those who suffer severely may have other diseases and lose the ability to work," Zhang said.

He also said that the hospital would carry out a psychological rescue program throughout the quake-hit areas, including teaching locals about mental diseases and holding training programs for volunteers, teachers and officials.

However, this is likely to provide far less than what is needed, according to a Xinhua News Agency report. International standards, the report said, demand that every 10 mental problem sufferers need one psychotherapist. If this number is accurate, then China needs more psychological consultants in the long term.

The report said that China had over 16 million mental disease patients last year, while intervention and therapy was still hard to come by, and public awareness of mental health concerns was still very low. According to official statistics, by the end of 2006 there were 1,124 mental disease clinics in the country that held 19,000 therapists.

Many experts suggest the Central Government add mental health therapy to the list of reconstruction projects in the quake-hit areas.

"Rebuilding a spiritual home for people in the quake-hit areas will be one of the most arduous tasks in the entire reconstruction project. A series of related policies should be in place to ensure a long-term psychological rescue program is carried out," Zhang said.

There are positive signs, though. Since the earthquake, awareness about the importance of the mental health has increased among ordinary people and the government. Directed by the mental problems that local officials have suffered, the Beichuan County Government worked out two regulations in October 2008. The first says that county officials can have two days off a week. The second states that more officials will be brought in to work and they will be treated better, such as by the granting of subsidies.

The county government has also invited professional psychologists to provide therapy to local officials in the hopes of helping them step out of the darkness. In the process, the officials hope to avoid a repeat of the tragedies of Feng and Dong.