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NIU Tragedy

Student Affairs > Counseling and Psychological Services > NIU Tragedy

For Those Impacted by the Earthquake in China

Many people are finding themselves impacted by the earthquake in China. Some are from China. Some have family and friends there. Others may be touched by seeing the suffering on the news and are reminded of traumatic events in their own lives. If you are having difficulty dealing with these events, please check into the resources below, and please know that CAPS is available for students. There are also resources available for faculty and staff at Perspectives, the employee assitance program.

CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS REACTIONS

You have experienced a traumatic event. Even though the event may be over, you may now be experiencing or may experience later, some strong emotional or physical reactions. It is very common, in fact quite normal, for people to experience emotional aftershocks (or stress reactions) when they have experienced a horrible event.

The signs and symptoms of a stress reaction may last a few days, a few weeks, a few months, or longer, depending on the severity of the traumatic event. Occasionally, the traumatic event is so painful that professional assistance may be necessary. This does not imply craziness or weakness. It simply indicates that the event was just too powerful for the person to manage by him or herself.

Common Signs and Signals of a Stress Reaction

Physical	Relational	Emotional

Fatigue	Isolation	Fear
Insomnia	Intolerance	Guilt
Hypersomnia	Resentment	Anxiety
Underactivity	Loneliness	Depression
Nightmares	Lashing out	Emotional numbing
Hyperactivity	Hiding	Helplessness
Exhaustion	Clamming up	Over sensitivity
Startle reflex	Lowered sex drive	Amnesia for the event
Appetite changes	Nagging	Anger
Headaches	Fewer contacts with friends	The "blues"
Tension	Lack of intimacy	Mood swings
Weight changes	Distrust	Bad temper
Colds		Nightmares
Pounding heart		Crying spells
Teeth grinding		"No one cares"
Foot-tapping		Nervous laugh
Finger-drumming		Worrying easily
Accident prone		Discouraged
Muscle aches		Little joy
		Loss of emotional control

Mental	Spiritual	Cognitive

Forgetfulness	Emptiness	Difficulty with concentration
Dull senses	Loss of meaning	Difficulty with solving problems
Poor concentration	Doubt	Difficulty with decisions
Low productivity	Unforgiving	Flashbacks
Negative attitude	Martyrdom	Memory disturbance
Confusion	Looking for magic	Inability to attach importance to anything other than the incident
Lethargy	Loss of direction
Whirling mind	Cynicism
No new ideas	Apathy
Boredom	Needing to "prove" self
Spacing out
Negative self-talk

Things you can do to help yourself

Within the first 24-48 hours, periods of appropriate physical exercise, alternated with relaxation will alleviate some of the physical reactions.

Structure your time; keep busy.

You are normal and having normal reactions; don’t label yourself crazy.

Talk to people; talk is the most healing medicine.

Beware of numbing the pain with overuse of drugs or alcohol; you don't need to complicate this with substances.

Reach out; people do care.

Maintain as normal a schedule as possible.

Spend time with others.

Help your peers as much as possible by sharing feelings and checking out how they are doing.

Give yourself permission to feel rotten and share your feelings with others.

Keep a journal; write your way through those sleepless hours.

If there is media coverage, limit your exposure.

Do things that feel good to you.

Realize those around you are under stress.

Don't make big life changes.

Do make as many daily decisions as possible which give you a feeling of control over your life (i.e., if someone asks you what you want to eat, answer them, even if you are not sure).

Get plenty of rest.

Don't try and fight reoccurring thoughts, dreams or flashbacks--they are normal and will decrease with time and become less painful.

Eat well-balanced and regular meals (even if you don't feel like it).

Things your friends and family can do to help you

Listen carefully.

Spent time with the traumatized person.

Offer your assistance and listening ear if they have not asked for help.

Reassure them that they are safe.

Help them with everyday tasks like cleaning cooking, caring for the family, minding children, etc.

Give them some private time.

Don't take their anger or other feelings personally.

Don't tell them that they are "lucky it wasn't worse;" a traumatized person is not consoled by those statements. Instead, tell them that you are sorry such an event has occurred and you want to understand and assist them.

(Adapted with permission from the CISM Information Pamphlet of the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc.)

The information above, Critical Incident Stress Reaction, can be downloaded as a PDF.

Campus Resources

Counseling and Psychological Services

Other Resources

American Psychological Association: Tips for Recovering from Natural Disasters