DEDICATED TO THOSE WHO’ S LIVES WERE TAKEN THE DAY AN ARMED SHOOTER ENTERED THEIR SCHOOL AND TO ALL THOSE THAT CONTINUE TO DEAL WITH THE TRAUMA. February 14, 2018
The answer to the title of this blog is, there is no way to measure PTSD! Trauma is specific to each individuals reaction, experience, mitigating factors, personal involvement, victim, witness, loss and all that this entails. According to the American Psychological Association the definition of Trauma is, “Trauma is an emotional response to terrible event like an accident, rape or natural disaster. Immediately after the event, shock and denial are typical.” There are three types of Trauma…..
1. Acute Trauma- is usually due to a single event Ex. car accident
2. Chronic Trauma-is when the trauma keeps repeating over and over Ex. domestic violence
3. Complex Trauma-continuous traumatic events Ex. watching a loved one live through a terminal disease
The definition of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder according to the Mayo Clinic, “Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental health condition that’s triggered by a terrifying event. Either experiencing it or witnessing it.” People who suffer from Trauma over time with some help and taking care of themselves are able to move on pass the Trauma. If your Trauma symptoms continue over months and years then you may be diagnosed with PTSD. Signs of PTSD
1. Overt Anxiety
2. Flashbacks
3. Not able to sleep
4. Difficulty focusing
5. Reoccurring memories of the Trauma
6. A physical reaction when something triggers the event
7. Emotional reaction when something triggers the event
I am just touching the surface here regarding Trauma and PTSD. If you feel that you are suffering with Trauma or PTSD, please seek out Professional help. There are a lot of great professionals out there who deal specifically with Trauma. If you are personally interested into an in-depth meaning of PTSD, do some reading on the disorder. How many of you have had Trauma in your past? Honestly, when working with clients on a short term bases in the hospital setting, I worked with individuals that we were just trying to get stabilized. They were released into further care such as therapy or an outpatient treatment center. As a therapist I was book smart but as an individual I had no idea personally how PTSD has such a broad reach.
Imagine living in a town that avoids Valentines Day or feels guilty even celebrating the made up day. When helicopters fly overhead you are immediately brought back to that fateful day. Loud sounds in crowds make you jump and shudder. Maybe, you are afraid to be anywhere alone. Being in crowds cause panic and a flight or flight response. Social Media becomes the trigger very often for you and your feeds are full of reminders. The town you live in is small but you try to avoid passing the building where it all happened. Imagine five days a week going to a High School where there was a massacre or you are a parent who has to send their child there everyday. Memorials everywhere and even one being built across from your home. Maybe, you have decided to move away, your environment changes but you can’t escape fear, flashbacks, anxiety and insecurity.
WHAT IF?
Still finding it hard to relate? I totally get that and honestly you are truly blessed. Let me go a little further. What if on February 14th 2018 you find out that there is a mass shooting at the High School you child is at? What if you can’t get in touch with them? What if they are telling you that they are hiding in a closet. What if they tell you they hear gunshots? What if they tell you they are hiding behind a file cabinet trying to hide from the shooter? What if you are a teacher who feels responsible for her students and trying to protect them. What is you are teacher who realizes that two of your students were murdered? What if your friend’s child sends a video of what is happening in the building and the aftermath in their classroom? What if your child had to walk over bodies with blood everywhere just to exit the building? What if your child is now afraid to leave their home? What if your child is away at college currently and yet they are still haunted by that day. What if you lived in this town and everyday you are reminded of pure evil.
WHAT IF?
What if that fateful day you are one of the parents who still can’t get in touch with your child? Finally, after hours they are released by the SWAT team from the school. What If you still haven’t heard from your child? What if you are told to go to the local hotel to wait to hear about your child? What if you wait at this hotel until late at night and you are then told that your child has been murdered? Murdered in a horrific massacre where the shooter shot children and adults like they were prey. What if it was your child, family member, coworker or friend? G-d Forbid is what I would say if someone asked me this question. Unfortunately, 17 individuals family, friends, coworkers, children, fathers, sisters and brothers were killed that day. The Trauma is everlasting for these families. Do you experience this type of Trauma?
This blog is not about me but it is how I see through my own eyes, feel in my heart and head, how Trauma is devastating. Every year as February 14th approaches the wound opens again for everyone who lives in this town. The families who’s loved ones who were murdered well that pain is everlasting. The students who were there and survived are forever changed. We marched on Washington DC after the MSD shooting but unfortunately not a lot of change has occurred regarding gun reform.
So why did I write this blog today? I wrote this blog because I feel it is my responsibility to not let the world forget that tragic day. February 14,2018 reverberates in every individual who was impacted. I am sad to say this was not the last school mass shooting because they happen frequently in the US. PTSD is real in my world and I only hope you never know from it.
If you have stuck through this entire blog with me, I just want to say THANK YOU. You allowed me to share the devastation that one individual caused on an entire town.(not to mention having to go through his trial and witnessing that) This is just my small part as an individual who lived that day. This is my perspective and have I witnessed the everlasting effect it has had on many that I know. One thing I will say is that it has caused the youth of today to stand up for their safety and fight. Many of the survivors of the MSD massacre have moved to DC and are proactive on making schools safer. Maybe their efforts will save a life one day? There is a heavy burden that we all share. The burden is to not let the world forget our Trauma and loss. Everyone who lives or has lived in this town continues to honor those who we lost and the loss of innocence that day. This is my way of fulfilling that responsibility. Again THANK YOU for listening to me today and allowing me to keep the names of those who were taken that day alive. The answer to the title of this blog, “There is no way to measure someone’s Trauma!”
February 14, 2018
Alyssa Alhadeff, 14 Luke Hoyer, 15 Alex Schachter, 14
Scott Beigel, 35 Cara Loughran, 14 Carmen Schentrup, 16
Martin Duque, 14 Gina Montalto, 14 Peter Wang, 15
Nicholas Dworet, 17 Joaquin Oliver, 17
Aaron Feis, 37 Alaina Petty. 14
Jamie Guttenberg, 14 Meadow Pollack, 18
Chris Hixon, 49 Helena Ramsay, 17
MAY THEIR MEMORIES ALWAYS BE FOR A BLESSING
ILISE
