Pathfinder
Editor, Senior Moderator
Indepth: Coping with crisis
How do earthquake survivors cope with the destruction of their homes: from the terror of the moment, when the building shakes and gives way, to the aftermath of picking through the debris of their lives? And what about those who have witnessed horrors, or endured brutality ? how do they carry on, burdened with those memories?
In a word, resilience. Surviving a traumatic event does not mean psychological dysfunction will inevitably follow. According to Mike Wessels of the Columbia-based Global Technical Group on Psychosocial Well-being, it is a fiction that most people will need medical intervention to put their lives back together.
Reactions to - and symptoms of - stress vary. Some people have underlying conditions that may reduce their resilience, but generally, ?When people who have been through a terrible ordeal feel safe, have shelter and access to food and water and have the basic means for survival, they can recover quite quickly,? says Alison Schafer, mental health and psychosocial support interest group coordinator for World Vision International.
"Trauma" itself might not be a helpful term; it suggests a medical approach, which neglects people?s broader psychosocial needs and the interventions required to meet them, according to the UN Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) guidelines on Mental Health and Psychological Support in Emergency Settings. For many survivors the most troubling aspect of disaster is not the event itself, but coping with day-to-day life afterwards.
Rebuilding livelihoods, and thereby self-worth, is key. For parents, that means finding work to support their families; for children, the chance to get back to school and rediscover safety and routine. ?The majority of the time people will heal within themselves once those other aspects of their lives are restored,? says Schafer.
Read more:
http://www.irinnews.org/IndepthMain.aspx?InDepthID=87&ReportID=91035
How do earthquake survivors cope with the destruction of their homes: from the terror of the moment, when the building shakes and gives way, to the aftermath of picking through the debris of their lives? And what about those who have witnessed horrors, or endured brutality ? how do they carry on, burdened with those memories?
In a word, resilience. Surviving a traumatic event does not mean psychological dysfunction will inevitably follow. According to Mike Wessels of the Columbia-based Global Technical Group on Psychosocial Well-being, it is a fiction that most people will need medical intervention to put their lives back together.
Reactions to - and symptoms of - stress vary. Some people have underlying conditions that may reduce their resilience, but generally, ?When people who have been through a terrible ordeal feel safe, have shelter and access to food and water and have the basic means for survival, they can recover quite quickly,? says Alison Schafer, mental health and psychosocial support interest group coordinator for World Vision International.
"Trauma" itself might not be a helpful term; it suggests a medical approach, which neglects people?s broader psychosocial needs and the interventions required to meet them, according to the UN Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) guidelines on Mental Health and Psychological Support in Emergency Settings. For many survivors the most troubling aspect of disaster is not the event itself, but coping with day-to-day life afterwards.
Rebuilding livelihoods, and thereby self-worth, is key. For parents, that means finding work to support their families; for children, the chance to get back to school and rediscover safety and routine. ?The majority of the time people will heal within themselves once those other aspects of their lives are restored,? says Schafer.
Read more:
http://www.irinnews.org/IndepthMain.aspx?InDepthID=87&ReportID=91035
Thanks Pathfinder