Media coverage of raging rivers flooding Calgary and
neighbouring communities, communities being evacuted by air and heavy equipment, and people clinging to loved ones are among the unexpected and traumatic scenes which have confronted Albertans in the last few days. As the flooding has destroyed and damaged homes, property, and
vegetation, the loss of human life and animals has shaken our sense of safety
and security where we live and work.
We are grieving.
Some of us have lost our loved ones – people and pets. Some of us have lost our
place of sanctuary – our homes, treasured mementos, the fruits of loving care
of our gardens. Others of us have lost the trails and roads to those places to
where we escape in Kananaskis. There are losses that we don’t even know
or understand yet.
If you are experiencing a sense of trauma, numbness, shock,
sadness and being overwhelmed, here are some websites that offer some practical
strategies to help you cope.
This site from the University of New Hampshire has good info
about coping with the trauma
associated with the natural disaster of the flooding in our communities.
This guide from Australia has some excellent information.
Many of the web links are international.
This website has tips for helping kids cope with the
trauma of changes to their sense of safety and security.
Drink lots
of water. The brain’s response to trauma affects our ability to experience
thirst – we may become dehydrated without being aware of it – the resulting
confusion and difficulty thinking makes coping with the situation even worse.
THANK YOU to our first responders throughout the province for your courage, dedication and compassion.
My thoughts are with all of you who are struggling with the
impact of this flood on your life at this moment. May you find moments of
calmness and strength in this day.
Wendy
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