What to do Before, During and After any Disaster or Trauma

90% of the U.S. population suffers from some type of anxiety disorder. Any of these can be dangerous to your health.

Financial strain, worries about monetary disasters, and stress over the uncertainties of the economic future – job loss, home foreclosure, bankruptcy, plummeting stock and retirement values - can cause mental and physical breakdowns in work and social lives. These stresses can be as damaging as any severe, debilitating trauma.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

PTSD, stress, phobias, shell shock, and burn-out can result from financial worries, terrorist attacks, rapes, muggings, auto accidents, fire, earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, divorces, addictions, homelessness. In fact, any intense shock and/or prolonged aggravation and stress, mentally or physically, can cause severe psychological aftershock to the mind and body.

These stresses, unidentified or unattended, can cause loss of proper perspective, poor judgment, ineffective action, and may lead to mental, emotional, and physical breakdowns.

Only scientific debriefing that is safe, private, predictable and measurable should be considered for reducing symptoms of PTSD. Critical Incident Stress Debriefing methods (CISD) in use today are unpredictable and usually prolong the symptoms or even make them worse.

Definition of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Research has shown that 50 percent either of those in or near a disaster or those who experience extreme or prolonged stress suffer from various degress of psychological aftershock, a post traumatic stress disorder. This can result in physical, mental, emotional, social or work-related problems and pop up an hour later, the next day or a year down the line. This 50 percent may also suffer from a phobia, an excessive fear or avoidance of a particular situation or object.

In addition, another 25 percent suffer from full-blown phobias with accompanying excessive fears, which can result in the avoidance of similar situations, symbolic associations of the event or the avoidance of even thinking about them.

That's 75 percent who will suffer long after the catastrophe. Symptoms of this suffering can be as fully cataclysmic as the original experience. The phenomenon of “psychological aftershock” can have hidden symptoms that may arise weeks, months or even years after the disaster. If left undetected, they may even be misdiagnosed and become fatal.

That leaves one person out of four who will leave the disaster relatively unscathed, though perhaps feeling somewhat shook up. They seem to hav certain “coping skills,” and these have been identified by psychologists.

Self-Tests for Diagnosing PTSD

Take the easy self-tests below, and see if you show any of the signs. Then learn the necessary steps to safeguard you and your family from the needless suffering of painful “psychological aftershock.”

Someday, possibly tomorrow, you'll be glad you did.

These self-tests will help you identify the signs and symptoms of psychological aftershock, psychic numbness, panic attacks and phobias connected with disaster stress.

Check the items that apply to you or your loved ones and add up your scores. Scoring instructions will be found at the end of each test. If any of the scores show possible problems, you may want to seek expert help. (Visit the Phobias page for the best way to choose an expert disaster stress counselor.)

  1. Psychic Numbness Test
  2. Psychological Aftershock Test
  3. Panic Attack Test

An expert professional is an expert with disaster, trauma, phobia and stress. An expert professional can quickly and safely determine your needs, tell you specifically what they're going to do and how long it will take.

Psychological Survival Kit

Post traumatic stress disorders, phobias, shell shock, burn-out, they all arise because of two reasons:

  1. Intense shock and/or prolonged aggravation
  2. Stress to mind and body

This stress causes loss of proper perspective, poor judgment, ineffective action and even possible mental, emotional and physical breakdown.

What to do Before a Disaster

  1. Practice developing the five coping skills of survivors.
  2. Set up a specific plan of action and determine what, when, where, how, and by whom everything will be done. Then rehearse the plan.
  3. Practice staying positive and holding associated feelings. To help, learn to use the Keying technique to hold calm, relaxed, alert feelings and the Future Pacing procedure to help you focus beyond the predetermined plans. Use the process called “Future Pace Debriefing,” and practice “Relaxed Attention” of the Five Keys to Success in KEYING: THE POWER OF POSITIVE FEELINGS: Overcoming Fears, Phobias and Stress, Through the Briar Patch and The Power of Positive Feelings.
  4. Debrief past stress and traumas. Then use the Wash procedure. This helps you to stay in the present, increases awareness and intuitive abilities, and keeps you from getting drawn back into old dysfunctional patterns. It will also keep you from stacking up a series of traumas or prolonged stress in your body that hinders your ability to handle current stress.
  5. Practice the relaxation techniques.
  6. Stay away from caffeine, alcohol and drugs and check your physical fitness.

What to do During a Disaster

  1. Use the planned Keying process to stay calm, relaxed and alert.
  2. Recall and implement the pre-rehearsed Plan.
  3. Use your mental Refocusing Techniques.
    • Think of calmer thoughts (people or situations).
    • See the situation as a challenging opportunity with wonder and curiosity.
    • Reduce your mental pictures size and volume of negative self-talk.
  4. Use the Diaphragmatic Breathing routine.
  5. Keep moving around and stretch often. This removes toxins deposited in the body via stress and fears.
  6. Let the predetermined leader take over.
  7. Check yourself out and then begin to help others immediately.

What to do After a Disaster

  1. Administer all tests for psychological aftershock, phobias, psychic numbness and panic attacks.
  2. Use the scientific debriefing procedure to let go of the past.
    • Debrief with others who have a non-judgmental ear or by yourself.
  3. Use the Two or Three Place Wash with Future Pacing techniques.
  4. Continue the pre-practiced relaxation routine.
  5. Hold faith in a new beginning as you had Future Paced prior to the crisis. (Faith strengthens one's mind, body and soul.)
  6. Regroup and begin to help others in need. This changes your focus and you all win.
  7. Use Dr. Dossey's “Levels of Change” Pyramid.
  8. Continue implementing pre-determined plans and goals.

DISCLAIMER: These tests were developed by Dr. Dossey from his 20+ years of research in anxiety disorders, phobias and stress; the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale; and the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders III. The results of these tests should not, however, be construed as the final analysis. An appropriate health care professional - an expert in the area of PTSDs - should be consulted for positive diagnosis and treatment. The recommendations and suggestions included in this document are intended to improve psychological and physical preparedness in case of a crisis, disaster or trauma. However, they do not guarantee the safety of any individual or family member. Neither the publisher nor author assumes liability for any injury, psychological or physical, which may occur in connection with any disaster, trauma or crisis. Information based on material developed at the Stress Management Center/Phobia Institute in Asheville, NC.

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