[StBernard] Katrina Effects

[Westley Annis]

Wes,
 
The following are some thoughts that I recently shared with a good friend
after beginning a discussion about what the aftermath of Katrina has
brought.  This friend expressed emotional challenges and questioned the
experience.  I hoped that others may find it useful.  Please pass it on if
you would like.
 
What you are experiencing is totally normal and expected.  It is about this
time that both children and adults reach a maximum level of frustration
tolerance.  In general, children may handle things differently because for a
while many children may have interpreted their experience as an outing or
vacation or an adventure but that soon changes to a need for stability and
routine.  Adults on the other hand use the first few weeks to survive and
digest.  After that the reality of the life changing nature of this event
begins to sink in and take its toll.  Mood shifts and confusion coupled with
the ongoing uncertainty adds to this process.  What a person tends to
experience in normally stressful situations is magnified now because of the
lack of a persons anchors or those things in one's life that we count on as
automatic and consistent.  The reality of the loss not only of the major
possessions continues to come into focus while the added reality of the loss
of the small idiosyncrasies and unplanned daily events that complete our
community relationships starts to add up about now.  We tend to look for
places to vent or we may vent in unconscious ways and start to deal with
people and situations in ways that are "not like us".
 
What we can do is to first realize that this process is normal and that it
can take quite a while to work through.  It is important for people to reach
out or open up to those people around them who are mutual caregivers.  Keep
in mind that the mutual caregivers may be experiencing similar emotions at
the same time.  In these cases committing to talking to each other is
critical.  If one has access to a person who was not involved in the
disaster, this is a good time to spend some time with that person in a
leisure type activity.
 
Another activity that sometimes is helpful along this path is prayer time,
both individual and community.  Some personal reflection and uncensored
communication with God is a helpful activity- it is important to speak
freely and let God know your thoughts, fears, and feelings, NO MATTER WHAT
THEY ARE.  He has the capacity to answer us in ways that we can't begin to
imagine.
 
A third hint is to recapture your hopes and dreams.  Because our plans and
futures have been in many cases totally turned upside down, we can easily
begin to lose focus on where we were headed.  Adjusting our hopes and dreams
to fit our current circumstances reestablishes a bit of a sense of purpose.
It is a great way for us to reinvest in our talents, skills, and abilities
when we let ourselves dream about our triumphs and victories over this
challenge in our life.  It may sound corney- but this is a great time to see
ourselves in a successful light- in wahtever role that takes.
 
These are just a few thoughts.  There are lots of ways to deal with and grow
from an event like this and there are very few right and wrongs in a
personal journey through this type of a situation.  The only warning I would
offer is to avoid shutting down and turning in.  Short periods of inward
reflection is positive, but isolation and withdrawing are patterns to avoid.
 
Keep your faith and your faith will keep you.  I was once taught that in
challenging situations people are faced with a basic decision- do nothing;
do what is expected; or do what is expected and then some.  Our outcome is
largely determined by these choices.
 
Good luck and God Bless Us All,
Craig Taffaro