Hormonal fluctuations help explain released Israeli hostages’ deceptively healthy appearance

Hamas terrorists in Gaza have subjected Israeli hostages to lengthy periods of isolation, severe torture and starvation. Yet, despite the trauma, many hostages appear at first glance to be healthy when they return home to Israel.

The deceptive appearance is caused by hormonal processes in the body that stimulate the heart rate and cause a temporary feeling of euphoria before the hostages are released. 

For instance, the U.S.-Israeli hostage Sagui Dekel-Chen, who was released on Saturday together with fellow hostages Yair Horn and Alexander Trupanov, expressed strong positive emotions when learning that his wife Avital had given birth to their third child while he was in captivity in Gaza.

“I’m great, I’m great, I have a daughter,” Chen told media outlets. 

While Chen’s joy over the birth of his new daughter is undoubtedly genuine, his outward energetic appearance masked the suffering he endured during almost 500 difficult days in captivity. This behavior is explained by the release of hormones that impact both the mood and the initial energy levels.

Elevated adrenaline levels create the false impression that the released hostages are in better physical and mental condition than they actually are. When the body releases dopamine, the individual appears optimistic and full of happy energy. However, once the dopamine level drops, the traumatized individual will eventually feel physically exhausted and mentally depressed due to the trauma. 

Last month, medical experts warned that the released Israeli hostages would face complex physical and mental health issues once they return home to the Jewish state. 

“We saw that the hostages then were in a difficult state, although they faced few medical issues,” Dr. Noa Ziv of Schneider Children’s Medical Center close to Tel Aviv told the Times of Israel, referring to the first hostages that were released in November 2023 after 50 days in captivity. 

“That was after about 50 days of captivity. One can only speculate about the complex health and mental states the hostages will be in after 466 days in captivity,” she continued. 

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common among many released hostages who still face traumatic flashbacks from their difficult days in captivity. In addition, some also face long-term nutritional deficiencies. Many released hostages will also risk challenges with mood instability, memory loss and social exclusion. 

In some cases, the condition of the released hostages may be so severe that it cannot be masked by hormones. 

Like many other observers, U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to be shocked by the horrible condition of the recently released hostages Ohad Ben Ami, Eli Sharabi and Or Levy. 

“I watched the hostages come back today and they looked like Holocaust survivors. They were in horrible condition. They were emaciated. It looked like many years ago, the Holocaust survivors, and I don’t know how much longer we can take that,” Trump told media reporters, adding that “at some point, we’re gonna lose our patience.”  

“I know we have a deal we were supposed to get ... they dribble in and keep dribbling in ... but they are in really bad shape,” the president continued.