The trauma after the tragedy

The dust is slowly settling down on the blasts which left a trail of death in Mumbai and the stampede which proved fatal for numerous pilgrims to the Nashik Kumbh. But even as an entire nation comes to terms with the loss of innocent lives, another mammoth task lies ahead for those who have survived these tragedies — post-trauma stress disorder (PTSD). "PTSD can result from traumatic incidents such as kidnapping, serious accidents, natural disasters and violent attacks," explains psychiatrist Sanjay Chugh, MD, "The event which triggers off PTSD has either threatened the person''s life or the life of someone close to him or her. Alternatively, it could be something witnessed such as mass destruction."Those suffering from PTSD repeatedly relive the trauma in the form of nightmares and disturbing recollections during the day. "Such patients also experience sleeping problems and depression, and have trouble feeling affectionate. They might become aggressive or even turn violent," adds Chugh.While medical experts feel that PTSD is diagnosed only if the symptoms last for more than a month, the course of the illness varies and certain patients could take as long as six months to recover. Says psychiatrist Samir Parikh, MD, "What instigates PTSD is the high intensity of fear arousal, which not only brings back memories of the incident concerned, but also correlates this incident with others to magnify it."Psychiatrist Sunil Mittal, on his part, feels that what makes coping with a tragedy difficult is the suddenness and magnitude involved. "Everything happens so fast that there is no time for grief. Moreover, when a whole lot of people are involved in a tragedy, there are slim chances of people personally consoling the victims because practically everybody has been affected."Treatment of PTSD, in turn, is a multi-pronged process. Elaborates Parikh, "Certain forms of treatment appear to be quite promising. However, there is no definitive treatment and no absolute cure as such." But then, coming to terms with reality is not easy when your world has been turned upside down.