Researchers also acknowledge that high-levels of stress can be maintained even after a distressful event has passed. This is common in victims of highly traumatic events, such as surviving a war, natural disasters, or violent assaults; they may carry a heightened risk of dementia and Alzheimer's Disease.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rules that the state constitution gives gay and lesbian couples the right to marry, making the Bay State the first in the nation to allow same-sex marriage. Weddings begin in 2004.
More states ban same-sex marriage than allow it. But that doesn't tell the whole story. Update (6/26/2015): On June 26, 2015, the US Supreme Court ruled that bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional. The ruling effectively legalized gay marriage in every state. Just a few years ago, the fight for marriage equality looked incredibly bleak.