People went to sleep at Champlain Towers Wednesday night. They ended their day with thoughts of the what they intended to do Thursday. Maybe they were thinking about their jobs and what they needed to get done. Some may have thought about the plans they made with friends. Some may have been thinking about going to the gym to work out and stay healthy
Early Thursday morning their homes vanished. The rest of the residents of the massive condo complex were evacuated. Emergency Responders rushed to help. Families and friends frantically tried to reach people they loved, not knowing if they survived or were trapped, or, if they had passed away.
That is how powerful trauma is. It strikes without warning. No one plans for it to enter into their lives. It does not settle on the “victim” but reaches out to strike all the people involved in their lives.
For all the people involved, going to sleep Thursday night was more like passing out for a little while, instead of getting rest. As the days go by, nights will be much different from all other nights.
As of Friday morning, 159 people remained missing. 4 had been confirmed dead. For the survivors and the families of the missing, now is the time to seek help.
Chaplains have been mobilized to help with crisis intervention. After something like this the need to have someone to talk to is vital. Getting through it is hard enough, recovering from it is something no one should ever try to do on their own.
The time to start to seek help is now. As difficult as it is right now, as time passes the stress will increase and hope of finding survivors will diminish. Do not hold your emotions in. Beginning to heal now may very well prevent PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) from taking over the rest of your life.
If you are thinking you need to be strong to help others, then let that motivate you to be an example by asking for help because you need it. That will allow them to feel free to ask for it too. As much as you want to support others, use the opportunity to lean on one another. Just knowing they are not alone is healing for them…and you!
