The pain of the earthquake, which is one of the natural disasters, is very fresh and not only those who experienced the earthquake, but all segments of the society who directly or indirectly witnessed this earthquake were affected by this earthquake. But many of us go to work as if nothing happened, even if only recently. we have to move on with our lives we stay

Trauma is expressed as an event or situation that seriously threatens the physical and mental integrity of the individual. Based on the concept “society is like a living organism” the possibility of trauma in society seems to be so. Because this situation that happened to us endangered our living space; lowered our self-confidence, our self-esteem, our trust in other people. The symptoms mentioned are similar to the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and are common in many parts of society.

Many of us may be experiencing social trauma.

The main distinction is that while a single person is affected by an individual trauma, many people are affected by a social trauma. It is estimated that this number could reach hundreds of thousands during the earthquake we are experiencing. One of the most common emotions in societies experiencing social trauma is is uncertainty.

While the events appear to be strengthening community cohesion, the difficulty of ensuring security in those regions is weakening social ties. Even in earthquake-free areas likelihood of earthquake recurrence. It can cause fear and anxiety and increase people’s sense of hopelessness. Feeling hopeless, these individuals may adopt various harmful habits, such as alcohol and drugs, to avoid these feelings.

There’s another thing we live with as a society: Survivor Guilt

After the earthquakes, most of us eat, drink, carry, in short, everything we have. ashamed of the possibilities and maybe we refused to use it. In addition, there were times when we felt guilty for being alive and wanted to die with the dead. This actually has a counterpart in psychology: survivor guilt/syndrome. survival guilt syndrome. The symptoms (flashbacks, suicidal thoughts, lack of motivation, decreased/increased appetite) are generally similar to post-traumatic stress disorder.

This syndrome is commonly seen in disaster survivors. Examples are soldiers who have survived wars, survivors of terrorist attacks and, of course, survivors of natural disasters. These people feel the pain of those they have lost and blame themselves for what happened. We also experienced that during the pandemic. Especially in studies conducted on healthcare professionals, it appears that they feel this emotion intensely during the pandemic period.

There are also healthier strategies for coping with social trauma and guilt.

One of the first things you need to do to alleviate the effects of these traumas is to move on is self-care. This can be achieved by giving importance to activities such as regular sleep, exercise, healthy eating and meditation. By the way, taken social support and partner alimony also very important. This support is often obtained by talking about events with family, friends, or therapists.

Another thing to consider is think positive. While this is a bit difficult in such a large earthquake, the stress and anxiety caused by the trauma can be somewhat reduced if the events are treated in a positive way and a hopeful and positive perspective about the event is developed. Another factor that reduces the stress load is art considered to be. Individuals; It is thought that expressing one’s feelings by painting, playing music or writing can help reduce the effects of events and relax. This is certainly the case for non-reducing and increasing symptoms expert support should be taken.

Remark: Healing can take some time, and in some cases it doesn’t heal and turns into post-traumatic stress disorder.