Accept all of the feelings you are having as normal reactions to an extraordinary event. You are not “crazy.” You are reacting normally to a “crazy” event. Be patient with yourself. It takes time to recover emotionally from a traumatic event.
Accept the fact that you have been a victim and accept the feelings that result. Remember: others may not validate your feelings. In fact, they may minimize your experience: “You were only a witness,” or “You were really lucky,” or “It’s been two weeks, why are you still bothered?”
Don’t revert to alcohol, drugs, or overeating to cope. They will only make matters worse.
Maintain normalcy. Go about your daily routines and take care of business.
Attempt to understand what happened by getting the facts.
Talk about the event and write about it.
Combat any guilt you might have by:
Accepting it as normal.
Talking to others about your role and their role during the event. You are probably not alone in your reaction to this event.
Realizing you were a victim yourself and not a trained rescuer.
Recognizing what you “did right.”
Recognizing the extenuating circumstances related to the event: the suddenness, the danger, etc.
Help others in your family or group.
Reach out to support those who are particularly traumatized.
Respect each other’s way of coping. Don’t victimize them by judging their individual coping style. Let the “grievers” grieve and allow the “doers” to do.
Bereavement groups provide an opportunity to share grief with others who have experienced a similar loss.
If the healing process becomes too overwhelming, seek professional help.
