What impact does a crime have on people?
Even though the event is over, a person continues to experience or, after some time, begins to experience a strong emotional and/or physical reaction to what has happened. Sometimes these reactions appear immediately after the traumatic event. Sometimes they may appear a few hours or days later. And in some cases, it may take weeks or months for the reactions to manifest themselves. How can we overcome the stress that traumatizes us? It is important to continue living and seek help to overcome the emotional and physical reactions after trauma.
You can get professional psychological help at the Crisis and Counseling Center “Skalbes” by calling the 24-hour Crisis Hotline at 67222922 or 27722292.
Signs and symptoms of stress reactions can last for a few days, weeks, or months, and sometimes even longer, depending on the severity of the traumatic event. This can lead to problems in relationships with others, in performing work and daily tasks, and in other important areas of human functioning. This is called post-traumatic stress syndrome.
Stress reactions can be overcome more easily and quickly with the understanding and support of loved ones. However, sometimes the traumatic event can be so severe that professional counseling is needed to overcome its consequences. This does not mean that the person is abnormal or weak. It simply indicates that the event has left too strong an impression for the person to cope with on their own.
Signs of post-traumatic stress syndrome:
- Regular intrusive thoughts, dreams, and memories of the traumatic event, repeatedly seeing what happened before your eyes
- Pronounced stress when encountering things that symbolize or remind you of what happened
- Lack of interest in activities and things that were important in the person’s life before the trauma
- Feeling of alienation, inability to feel emotions, often inability to be in loving, close relationships
- Inappropriate reactions to what is happening around them, irritability, outbursts of anger
- Sleep disturbances
- Easy fatigue, headaches, high blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, various somatic pains without physical cause
- Difficulty concentrating, abstract thinking, problem solving and decision making, memory disorders
- Feeling of insecurity, fear, confusion, suspicion
- Feeling of guilt about what has happened or blaming others
- Marked changes in social activity (both decrease and increase)
- Increased use of alcohol or other intoxicating substances.
What you can do:
- Don’t think you’re abnormal – all these reactions are normal!
- Structure your time, keep yourself busy – plan your day so that you can do as much as possible without overworking yourself; so that you can do enough to avoid regretting wasted time in the evening.
- Stick to your usual daily routine as much as possible – habit can help you regain the feeling that there are still stable and valuable things in your life.
- Get used to the idea that events have different causes and different solutions. In order to cope with the flood of information, the human psyche simplifies everything, but in simplifying, we lose a lot of important information.
- Talk to others, share your feelings – conversation can be the best medicine; the main thing is to find someone you trust – a relative or close friend, a priest or a psychotherapist.
- Allow yourself regular and specific time for your experiences, without bottling them up or suppressing them. Find a moment each day to listen to your feelings and let your emotions flow. Then return to your daily tasks and know that you will have another opportunity to deal with your experiences.
- Find an activity or hobby that will make you socially active and get you out of the house. You don’t have to find a lifelong passion, it could simply be something you’ve always wanted to try or something you’ve long forgotten.
- Write a diary – you can even “write yourself through” insomnia, if it is bothering you now – or find some other way to spend your free time.
- Take care of yourself – do whatever helps you feel better.
- Don’t make any major changes in your life until you have dealt with the stress caused by the trauma.
- Make as many small everyday decisions as possible – this will help you feel that you are in control of your life.
Some recommendations for family members and friends:
- Listen carefully – by listening to him, you will help him the most – he probably already hears enough advice.
- Spend as much time together as possible.
- Offer your help and listen even if they don’t ask for it.
- Reassure them that they are safe.
- Help them cope with daily tasks.
- Allow them to be alone.
- Don’t take expressions of anger or other emotions personally.
- Don’t say that they are lucky and that it could have been worse – instead, reassure them that you are very sorry that something like this has happened and that you really want to understand, be there for them, and support them.
Life is diverse, life is varied.
There are many positive and negative things in life at the same time.
If it is too difficult to overcome the negative ones on your own, seek support and help!