View image @ ideacreamanuelaphotos
|
Young People Ask . . . |
|
“Why did the terrorists have to kill my mom?”— Kevin.* “[Before September 11], I used to love tunnels. Now I imagine dying in a tunnel because of its being blown up.”— Peter. |
| KEVIN’S mother was killed in the September 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. Peter did not suffer a similar terrible loss, but he was still greatly affected by the events.One news report says: “Thousands of children living in New York are struggling with mental problems related to [the attacks on] September 11 that in many cases will last into adulthood.” Alarmingly, signs of emotional trauma were “just as prevalent in children who were nowhere near ground zero as in those who had witnessed the attacks first hand.”#The same might be said regarding other tragedies, such as suicide bombings in Israel and random shootings elsewhere. Regarding such shootings one expert on the effects of trauma said: “Even if [the children] live 2,000 miles away, these events can still increase [their] anxiety.”The reason? When disastrous events take place, young ones are exposed to a flood of graphic media coverage. Frightening images of terrorist bombings, school shootings, and natural disasters are repeated over and over again, making it difficult for many youths to erase the pictures from their minds. Little wonder that a survey conducted for the New York City Board of Education revealed: “Six months after the World Trade Center collapse, 76 percent of 8,266 public school students still thought frequently about the terrorist attacks.”
We live in what the Bible calls “terrible times.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5, New International Version)
How can you cope when terrifying tragedies occur?%
See the whole Awake! article.
|
| * Some of the names have been changed. # According to mental-health experts, such symptoms might include emotional numbness, nightmares, isolation, cessation of normal activities, and feelings of guilt and anger. % Although this article is specifically dealing with large-scale tragedies, the counsel can also be applied to personal tragedies, such as the loss of a loved one.Photo Credit: shawnzlea |
