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DEL.ICIO.USCoping with crisis
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Compared to Katrina, Hurricane Gustav was a stroll in the park. That was an exaggeration of course. The potential crisis has shaken up a lot of people in the Gulf area. Psychologist Hap LeCronoe recommends: “Slow down when possible and avoid panic by maintaining a focus on goals and objectives. Consider delaying major decisions or life changes when possible while you are dealing with the aftermath of a crisis. Try to embrace change as a challenge rather than a threat.” What was your experience with a major crisis? And how did you survive it?
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By gwarfan
September 3, 2008 10:13 AM | Link to this
Lots and lots of drinking
By B Swanson
September 3, 2008 11:03 AM | Link to this
Having survived many hurricanes on the Gulf Coast, since 1979’s Hurricane Frederick, it is a traumatic experience that takes a long time to get over, if ever. It is a life-changing event unfortunately. Normalcy comes back at a very slow pace, even if you were not directly affected, the area around you is, and return to normalcy includes the stabilization of your community, your friends, the local businesses, etc. We have learned normalcy never returns in the way of home-owners insurance. And there is always the stress each returning hurricane season, when there are storms forming in the Atlantic, and you think, is this the one? Although the news media is to provide info for you to prepare, the constant bombarding of info and warnings, the tracking of the storm, the predicting of the unpredictability of the storm, brings on more stress prior to the storm. After the storm, normalcy can take months, decades, or never. One cannot truly understand until you have survived a hurricane, experienced the aftermath, been without electricity for weeks, must boil water to drink, buy ice for $5 to $10 a bag, experience price gouging on essentials to live, have no gasoline for the generator (if you are lucky to own one) or your car, be stung by the insects who are totally disoriented and lost their homes too, see gators and snakes in the water surrounding your home because they too are disoriented, have dirty towels & clothes stack up with no electricity to wash them, hear the only sound of chain saws cutting huge limbs and trees for hours at a time, or picking through the debris that once was your home trying to salvage anything that will try to bring you some normalcy in your upside-down life. I feel normalcy never returns totally, there’s always the fear that takes over when you hear of another storm forming.
By RealityKing
September 3, 2008 11:30 AM | Link to this
I thrive by not waiting on the government to rescue me..