Exposure to Tragedy  by Amy Shuman Eckard MSW, LICSW

    When we’re exposed to tragic events, we each have a different level of reaction to them. Some of us may not be affected very much at all, either at the time of the event, or later on. Others may be profoundly affected to the point that they can’t function at all, either at the time, or after hours, days, weeks, even months or years. And there are many shades of reaction and effect in between…..
    The ways that we are affected by exposure to traumatic events vary because we are different. We are different in how our brains operate due to the chemical and biological make up of who we are. Also, we are each made up of the unique experiences we have had in our lives, and these help to shape how we will cope and recover from present traumatic events. Sometimes, but not always, people who have had past exposure to traumatic events, will have a more difficult time bouncing back from the effects of the current tragedy.
    Other differences include how we can or can’t make sense of what is happening, how threatened we feel by what is happening, either psychologically or physically, how threatened we think our loved ones may be, how out of control we perceive we are.

    There’s also a larger feeling that our safety may be threatened by the circumstance. An example to illustrate the point:

    We all drive vehicles on the roads every day. We have security and comfort in the knowledge that when driving down the road or highway, the other vehicles driving in the opposite direction will stay on their side of the yellow line. Now imagine that suddenly, unpredictably, a car veered over the line toward you and –BOOM-crashed into you. Not only would you have to deal with all of the levels of upset and hurt that occurred as a result, but even after healing from that, you are now plagued by the new knowledge that the yellow line going down the middle of the road CAN be crossed and tragedy can result. You now have difficulty retreating into the sense of security that the yellow line used to provide.
    When people are exposed to traumatic events, they may experience no or very mild symptoms or more serious ones. Some of the more troubling symptoms may include:


    Individuals experiencing symptoms like those described above may decide that they would like help dealing with them. Many times this depends on how interfering or lasting the symptoms are, and also depends on their level of comfort to ask for, and receive this kind of help.
    In recent years trauma specialists have been developing a wider and deeper understanding about how we are affected by exposure to traumatic events. There is help available for people who are having any reactions to exposure whether their symptoms are mild and more easily dealt with, or seriously impairing the person’s ability to function.
 
    It’s becoming more certain that when individuals do have troubling side-effects because of their involvement in, or exposure to a traumatic event, the sooner they receive help from a trained specialist, the better the chances are that they will be able to manage their symptoms, or even become symptom free. This may be the first step to restore their sense of meaning and level of quality in their life.
 

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