Here are some possible things that may occur after a trauma such as warnatural disasters, school-related stress, work-related stress, death of family or friends, or others.
Shock: where individuals might feel stunned, dazed or numb, cut off from one’s feelings and what is going around them.
Denial: when individuals can’t accept what has happened.
It is important to remember that most people don’t develop a serious mental health problem after a trauma (disaster or emergency). So while people can have strong reactions after a traumatic event, most people recover on their own. It is important to process the stress and emotion within 30 days so that a mental illness does not develop.
The Stepped Care Approach
This approach is based on the idea that not everyone needs the same amount of help after a trauma (disaster, emergency, etc.) The steps are as follows:
- Everyone affected by a disaster will need information in the immediate hours, days, and weeks after an event
- Many people will need Psychological First Aid in the weeks after an event (see below)
- Some people will have stress and difficulties that continue on after weeks/months that will need action-oriented support such as Skills for Psychological Recovery
- A few people will need professional mental health treatment for problems such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Psychological First Aid
Psychological First Aid (PFA) is a way of helping people immediately after a disaster or emergency.
PFA involves:
- Offering practical care and support without forcing it on people
- Helping people meet their basic needs (Food, water, information)
- Listening to people but not pressuring them to talk
- Comforting people and helping them to feel calm
- Connecting people to information, community services and social supports
- Protecting people from further immediate harm
There are 4 main types of actions in PFA
Prepare |
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Look |
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Listen |
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Link |
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PFA is not professional counseling or therapy and not about pressuring people to talk or analyze what happened to them. It is also not something that everyone wants or needs. There are some cases where PFA isn’t appropriate, such as when dealing with people in need of emergency medical care, those who are so upset they cannot care for themselves, or those who may hurt themselves or others.
Therefore, for recovery it is most important for people to feel safe and connected to other people, and that they have social, physical and emotional support and feel like they can help themselves and their community.
What is Post Traumatic Disorder?
Provided by Canadian Mental Health Association
Post-Traumatic Stress disorder *(PTSD) is a mental illness that involves exposure to trauma involving death or the threat of death, serious injury or sexual violence. When individuals go through something traumatic it can be frightening, overwhelming and causing lot of distress. Some examples of these events include crimes, natural disasters, accidents, war or conflict, or other threats to life
Possible Symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress (These symptoms can be a normal initial reaction to a trauma and need to be worked through as soon as possible after the trauma)
- Thinking about the disaster or traumatic event all the time
- Having flashbacks to the event
- Avoiding things that remind them of the event
- A change in your sleep pattern (sleeping less or more; waking up through the night; having nightmares or not sleeping at all)
- Avoiding people or activities that you usually enjoy
- Using alcohol or drugs more
- Changes in appetite (eating more or less than usual)
- Feeling hopeless
- Feeling more worried or frustrated than usual
- Having thoughts about harming yourself or suicide (call 911 if this occurs)
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