There is no doubt that the pandemic poses a serious challenge to emotional well-being and even to mental health more specifically. Chronic insecurity, massive job losses and economic hardship - are often enough to destabilize people. Add to this the fact that we are dealing with a highly contagious and deadly disease, the victim of which can be any of us at any time.
The pandemic is a major stressor and a potential threat to mental health, but is it a trauma ?
At first glance, it does not fit well with patterns of factors that may lead to the development of post-traumatic stress reactions. For a start, the pandemic is something current and that has had continuity and the stress of many people related to it, has to do with possible future events, rather than current or past experiences. Meanwhile, traditional patterns of response to post-traumatic stress by definition, assume that the response is in response to something that has happened in the past.
Moreover, most post-traumatic stress patterns occur after direct exposure to a direct life-threatening event. People's experience of the pandemic is largely indirect (for example: reading articles, following Covid news, etc.) and stressful events are not immediately life threatening, but are by-products of the pandemic such as job loss, financial instability, and isolation. social. However, some recent studies suggest that even in these unusual circumstances, people are showing traditional responses to traumatic stress to the pandemic.
There are also special quarantine-related circumstances that may result in an increase in traumatic stress responses, especially for family members who may experience abuse in their own homes. Moreover, health care workers, who have been exposed to some of the most horrific, shocking scenes of serious illness and death, may also now be at increased risk of developing post-traumatic stress due to long-term experiences. pandemic.
Beyond what we are already seeing, there is reason to believe that traumatic responses to the pandemic may increase over time. It is undoubtedly possible that although a large number of people are already struggling with their mental health in the midst of this pandemic, these numbers increase as the pandemic is over and we return to normal life. A portion of people are likely to experience some degree of trauma.
While much remains to be seen about the link between Covid-19 and trauma, the pandemic is a useful reminder that traumatic events can be slow to unfold, collectively experienced, and even somewhat indirect in nature.
Whether Covid-19 constitutes a traditional trauma or not, the high degree of destruction and uncertainty left behind will continue to haunt many people. We need to be prepared to help them recover from this horrible experience of lack of control and constant fear for safety and well-being.
Source: Psychology Today
