First psychological aid in disaster

Possible Psychological symptoms

• Mood swings
• Sadness, depression, grief
• Denial
• Relationship conflicts/marital problems
• Irritability, anger
• Fear of recurrence
• Feeling overwhelmed, stunned, or numb
• Feeling helpless/powerless

We should some physical needs,such as warmth, safety,rest, fluids and food, as well as emotional needs,such as protection, comfort,control, reassurance,and so on.

The first psychological aid in disaster should assure physical safety in ourselves, The medical care, food , water, shelter will be assistant in getting information. A continuous truthful and helpful information is generally more important than any pressure to do a cathartic type of therapy at this stage.

The importance action is to get proper sleep and avoid any tendency to use drugs and alcohol to deal with painful feelings. As the weeks and months going on, people who are having psychological difficulties are unable to function because of these feelings or may even be suicidal are identified and offered proper treatment. Obviously the people who provide the treatment need to be skilled in administering it and also have understanding of the setting, culture and religious beliefs of the population.