According to interviews and surveys, many victims showed different degrees of psychological problems after the earthquake, and most people could not get rid of the psychological shadows brought by the earthquake, such as nightmares. "Closing your eyes is the scene when the house collapses." ; Or dizzy all day, everything in front of you is shaking and your legs are weak.
Experts say there are three kinds of "mental patients" after the earthquake. First, I had a disease in the past and was cured. The earthquake caused mental tension and fear, and induced old diseases. Second, the elderly are frail and sick, and various physiological functions decline. The earthquake causes mental tension and fear, which in turn leads to endocrine disorders or further decline of some physiological functions, which leads to dizziness, headache and heart disease. Third, the mental stress and fear brought by the earthquake, coupled with the constant aftershocks, have produced conditioned reflex, which will make you more nervous and irritable when aftershocks occur.
Looking back on the Tangshan earthquake (1July 28th, 976), the psychological trauma caused by the earthquake has had a lasting stress effect on the victims, which has affected their physical and mental health for a long time. People who died in the earthquake have different psychological feelings from those who have no relatives. People who lived for the rest of their lives after the earthquake developed some kind of post-traumatic stress disorder. Among them, the proportion of neurosis, anxiety and phobia is higher than the normal epidemiological data, and some are 3 ~ 5 times higher than the normal value. Many people suffer from insomnia, dreaminess, emotional instability and anxiety. 28 "will touch the scene injury, etc. The proportion of people who have experienced earthquake trauma suffering from hypertension and cerebrovascular diseases is also higher than that of normal people.
A patient lost three children in Tangshan earthquake. Every time I see a child about the same age as her deceased child, she can't help but feel sad and unhappy for a long time. Hang curtains at home even in broad daylight. If you don't hang the curtains, you will have the illusion that the children who died in the earthquake came in through the window. Whenever she talks about her past experiences, she will burst into tears.
Another patient was trapped in the ruins for 4 hours in the Tangshan earthquake, and rescuers arrived in time to get him out of danger safely, leaving a shadow in his heart. Once he was on a business trip in other places, and his residence suddenly lost power. In the dark, he suddenly felt respiratory distress, and great fear came to his heart, as if he were buried under the rubble again. Later, this illusion gradually increased, and fear followed. He can no longer stay in a closed environment and has to open doors everywhere.
Xiao, a professor at China Mental Health Association, believes that "disasters will cause serious psychological trauma to people. If they are not treated in time, they will torture people for life, change their personalities and even lead to extreme behaviors such as suicide and violence. "
What is crisis psychological intervention?
In the field of psychology, crisis intervention refers to taking clear and effective measures for individuals in psychological crisis, so that they can finally overcome the crisis and adapt to life again. The main purpose of psychological crisis intervention is to avoid self-harm or injury to others and restore psychological balance and motivation. In the tsunami, effective crisis intervention is to help people gain a sense of physical and psychological security, alleviate or even stabilize the strong fear, shock or sadness caused by the crisis, restore psychological balance, adjust their recent lives, learn effective strategies and healthy behaviors to deal with the crisis, and thus improve their mental health. In order to carry out effective psychological intervention in the crisis, we must know what psychological needs people have in the crisis. During the tsunami, people will be more concerned about the basic survival issues of individuals, such as whether the environment is safe and whether health is guaranteed. Will worry about themselves and the people they care about (such as parents, relatives, children, friends, teachers); Will show panic, helplessness, escape, degeneration, fear and other behaviors; I want to reveal my inner feelings about the tsunami emergency; Longing for life to settle down and return to normal as soon as possible; I hope to get the understanding and support of others' emotions. These psychological needs provide a basis for crisis psychological intervention.
How to carry out psychological intervention in psychological crisis?
Crisis intervention usually takes place within hours, days or weeks after a crisis. Crisis intervention workers must generally be specially trained psychologists, social workers, psychiatrists, etc. During the tsunami, there were a wide range of people who needed psychological intervention, including people with physical trauma, front-line medical staff, emergency service personnel and volunteers who had close contact with patients. They were prone to psychological problems. In addition, people who are unwilling to seek medical treatment openly and the general public who are worried about fear also need psychological assistance. There are many forms of crisis intervention. Crisis psychological counseling is different from traditional psychological counseling, and the development of crisis psychology has special laws. We should use immediate, flexible, convenient and short-term counseling strategies to help people adapt to and survive the crisis and restore their normal functions as soon as possible. Psychological support groups are widely used in crisis intervention.
Tips:
How to channel panic?
In the face of unexpected events, when you feel a lot of psychological pressure, you should communicate with your relatives and friends, let your emotions get a reasonable vent, and speak out your panic boldly. At this time, it is best to communicate by telephone and internet. Speak your mind and ease your inner anxiety through communication. Face and admit your psychological feelings frankly, without forcing yourself to resist or deny the psychological experience of fear, worry, panic and helplessness in the face of disasters and emergencies, and try to maintain a peaceful mind. Never use alcohol and tobacco to relieve stress, let alone produce bad emotions such as anger. At the same time, start scientific psychological adjustment measures, carry out some activities that can relax yourself, such as listening to music, reading novels, keeping a diary, cleaning up housework and other small things that interest you, transfer your emotions and keep a good sleep.
If there are old people or children at home, there may be some abnormal behaviors: irritability, excitement, anxiety, nagging, and even association with some negative events in the past. At this time, families should try their best to understand, and it is best to be together to enhance interdependence and security. We should fully respect their emotional reactions, make them feel valued and trusted, so as to be full of pride and self-confidence, reduce the possibility of negative emotions, and encourage and inspire their loved ones with their self-confidence.
How to deal with bereavement?
Every mourning process is heavy. If the death of a loved one is sudden and completely unexpected, then such a blow is often more unbearable than the foreseeable death (such as the death of a loved one due to cancer). ), and the mourning reaction may be stronger and the mourning process will last longer, just like the accidental death caused by this earthquake.
Losing a loved one will cause people to have a high degree of emotional loss, including sadness, anger (hating the deceased to abandon themselves, or complaining about their mistakes in some aspects), guilt, self-blame, anxiety, fatigue, helplessness, loneliness, fear and hard thinking.
In addition to mourning, many people also have nightmares, blame themselves, fantasize that they could have lost their loved ones in the fall, and then take the death of their loved ones as their own fault. At this time, psychological intervention is very important. It is necessary to appease the emotions of survivors and let them know that natural disasters took away their loved ones, not their fault.
At the same time, survivors should be strong as soon as possible, learn to adapt to the new environment where their deceased relatives no longer exist, play new roles that they were not used to before, and master some life skills that they did not have before to adapt to the new environment. If we can't realize that the environment has changed and redefine the goal of life, we will easily fall into pain for a long time, which is extremely unfavorable to our health.
As a mother who lost her son wrote, "It was not until recently that I noticed that some things in my life were still open to me and made me happy. I will still mourn for my children. My memory of his love will last forever, but life will go on. Anyway, I must live healthily. "