Critical Incident Stress Syndrome 2

SARBC

Search and Rescue Society of British Columbia

It can make a grown man cry, vomit, fight for breath, even commit suicide if not treated. It is very important that this syndrome be understood and the need to deal with it be recognized. Rescue workers are hidden victims of an overwhelming psychological experience - dealing with the recovery of burned, drowned, decomposed and dismembered human bodies.

If left untreated, they may have unresolved conflicts and feelings that remain long after the trauma. These side effects range from headache, fatigue, and sexual dysfunction, to terrifying dreams, hallucinations, severe withdrawal and apathy.

The syndrome affects firemen, policemen, search and rescue crews - anyone called upon to deal with death and injury in the course of duty.

It is very important to react immediately.

Studies show that physical exercise is a great stress release and dissipates adrenaline which has been pumping for hours. Even a brisk walk helps clear the head and give a person time to think things out.

Rescue crews should be told to stay away completely from coffee and sugar for a few hours - sugar raises the blood pressure and the heart beats faster. Coffee is a stimulant.

Alcohol and drugs are also out. If people rely on them to unwind, they can become very dependent very fast.

A debriefing can release much of the negative reaction. Debriefing is necessary because there are significant differences between normal death and violent or collective death. Normal death is usually predictable, and it is surrounded in comforting regulation, dignity and decorum.

In disaster situations such primary coping methods are absent. The indignity is grotesque, the disorder is terrifying.

Rescuers must suppress their feelings and concentrate on the task. This delays their psychological reaction. After a disaster ends and normal routine starts, there is often an intense period when repressed feelings start to surface. It is important for workers to talk to their "buddies" to vent their feelings.

Rescuers are brave, heroic people and because of this they are sometimes reluctant to seek help. It's the John Wayne syndrome - movies have glamorized their careers, made them seem superhuman.

Critical stress debriefings have been part of certain federal response agencies for years now. Information meetings take place as soon as crews return from a significant mission. They are de-briefed within 72 hours. One-to-one sessions are provided if the individuals require it.

Organizations that really care for their personnel are moving in this direction.

In the rescue business it is often the good people that burn out. The ones that are most devoted, most caring. Rescuers are unusual in that they must constantly fight natural instinct. They must face very dangerous situations over and over again and move right into them. They put their lives on the line for all kinds of reasons - the public rarely hears about it.

Time to heal is vital. During the Second World War many troops were sent back home on transport ships. They debriefed themselves by talking to each other. By the time the soldiers got home they were reasonably stable. But in Vietnam it was very different. Many military personnel were flown home in a matter of hours. The shock was terrible. Some still carry the emotional scars.

Sometimes a whole community can be traumatized, as in the case of the Mount Washington (V.I.) bus crash which killed two Claremont (Victoria) high school students.

What you can do right away is arrange for an on-call counselor in your community.

From a paper written by Sylvia Wedepohl, published in SARNEWS.