Mental trauma toughest for blast victims

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Jaipur: Four months ago Susheela Sahu's world was very different. The serial blasts in Jaipur sent her into a coma she is yet to come of. For her relatives and those who were with her on that terrible Tuesday that was May 13, an entire range of new fears have cropped up that they don't know how to deal with.

Susheela's sister Geeta was with her on May 13 when the blasts ripped through Jaipur. The physical recovery from her injuries took just a few weeks, but it's a struggle to get the fear out of her system. And when the blasts ripped through Ahemdabad, and then through Delhi, the memories came rushing back for her.

"The same incident strikes me again. I get up and run around restlessly. I can't sleep," says Geeta.

Susheela's daughter Priya wakes up to palpitations almost every night.

"Even when I go to my institute, I feel scared that anything could happen anywhere," says she.

The women of the Sahu family are showing signs of what is called post-trumatic stress disorder (PSTD). PTSD strikes when the truma one experiences leaves the victims with a sense of horror, terror and intense fear of losing their physical integrity.

They get anxious very easily, their startled response is very high and they may suffer from palpitations.

Those suffering will try and avoid being in similar situations.

Its believed that 70 per cent of people who experience such intense violence will suffer from PTSD and may need counselling.

Psychiatrist, Dr Samir Parikh says, "It's very important that apart from the infrastructure and logistics, mental health be made an integral part of disaster managemnet. It is very crucial to give emotional support to victims and to screen them for symtoms. Also they should get medical support and counselling when required. These are the fundamentals."

With terror attacks becoming a part of our daily lives, it's important that families like Susheela's get as much support as possible and their emotional well being be given as much importance as their physical health.