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How to cope with stress after the B.C. wildfires

One expert says stress will vary from person to person, but there are ways of dealing with it
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When Dr. Genevi猫ve Belleville hears about what people in British Columbia have experienced during the wildfire season, she says it is very similar to what was witnessed in Fort McMurray after last year香蕉视频直播檚 wildfire there.

香蕉视频直播淓verybody has been evacuated, or has been touched by the problem,香蕉视频直播 says Belleville, a professor of psychology at Laval University in Quebec City. 香蕉视频直播淓verybody knows someone who experienced serious loss. There can be some 香蕉视频直播榮urvivor香蕉视频直播 guilt about letting yourself feel whatever you have been experiencing, because you are comparing yourself to somebody who has had it worse than you.

香蕉视频直播淭his is a common reaction, I think, when an entire community has been subjected to a disaster or catastrophe.香蕉视频直播

The worst loss of homes happened in Boston Flats near Cache Creek, where the Elephant Hill wildfire all but one of 60 units in a mobile home park last month.

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Belleville says there are two kinds of stressors for evacuees.

香蕉视频直播淭he experience of fear during the evacuation is really important. If you feel you are going to lose everything, or that you are going to lose somebody you are really close to, this can make a big impression on your brain, and cause some reminiscences afterward that are going to be difficult to deal with.香蕉视频直播

The other kind of stress factor is the day-to-day adaption to the disaster.

香蕉视频直播淢aybe they didn香蕉视频直播檛 lose their home, but maybe they have cleaning to do, or they have some replacements to make. They have to deal with the insurance companies, or maybe some of them changed their work schedules or lost their jobs,香蕉视频直播 Belleville says.

Those who lost their homes will be living with extensive trauma, she adds.

香蕉视频直播淵ou not only lose the things you need to function. You lose memories, and things that you are emotionally attached to. That香蕉视频直播檚 a lot to take in, and obviously a very impactful event.香蕉视频直播

She says it香蕉视频直播檚 important for these people to get both tangible support, such as a place to stay while their home is being rebuilt, and emotional support, such as having others to talk to.

And she cautions about others being too optimistic.

香蕉视频直播淲ith good intentions, we might want to say to somebody, 香蕉视频直播楨verything is not so bad, everything is going to be alright, you香蕉视频直播檙e alive, that香蕉视频直播檚 what counts.香蕉视频直播 But sometimes these good intentions are a bit dismissive of what the person is trying to express, whether it香蕉视频直播檚 sadness or frustration.香蕉视频直播

She says there are other things those affected by the fires can do to de-stress, such as exercises to reduce anxiety and remembering to have fun with friends and family.

香蕉视频直播淪ome people go through what we call post-traumatic growth. The painful experience has opened their eyes on what their true value is, and what they want to focus their life on,香蕉视频直播 she says.

香蕉视频直播淥f course, these events are terrible, and we香蕉视频直播檙e not saying they香蕉视频直播檙e good things to experience, but there is hope that most people, with time and with care, are going to get better. Most of them are going to be resilient, and some of them may even find that this event maybe helped them change their life for the better.香蕉视频直播



Barbara Roden

About the Author: Barbara Roden

I joined Black Press in 2012 working the Circulation desk of the Ashcroft-Cache Creek Journal and edited the paper during the summers until February 2016.
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