Maintain a Healthy State of Mind: Seniors (Part 1)
Being mentally and emotionally prepared is the best way to reduce the effects of natural disaster or terrorism. Disaster disrupts your way of life and peace of mind. It can make you feel unsafe and afraid. This may increase feelings of mistrust and prejudice. You may find you react in different ways to stressful events. You may change whom you will talk to or trust, where you travel, or how you spend money. Sometimes feelings of hate towards others arise and lead to violence. This can destroy families and community life.
Although seniors have great strength from life experience, planning ahead can help decrease the risk of harm in an emergency. Planning ahead includes asking yourself the following questions:
- Do I tire easily?
- Do I need help to see, hear, or walk?
- Do I need to care for another person?
- Do I take daily medication?
Being mentally and emotionally prepared includes knowing
- What to expect
- When help is needed
- How to get help
What can I do to prepare myself now?
There are several things you can do ahead of time, when things are calmer, to get ready to respond to the kinds of events that a natural disaster or an act of terrorism might trigger. For example, you could
- Make a plan with family or household members—Decide how to stay in touch if something goes wrong. Set up a meeting place
- Prepare a disaster supplies kit, and keep it in a safe, easy-to-find place.
- Keep a spare pair of eyeglasses and extra medicine handy in case you need to leave your home quickly
- Learn about preparedness plans in your town
- Know your neighbors and how to get in touch with them
- Keep important documents in a safe place with easy access in case you need to leave your home
- Review your options and decide what to do before an emergency happens
- Know how to get in contact with service agencies you may need, such as the Area Agencies on Aging and the American Red Cross
- Learn more about what stress does and how to deal with it
How might I react to an extreme event?
People react differently to extreme events, because everyone has a different set of past experiences. Memories and feelings you thought you had left behind may return. However, the strength of these reactions tends to disappear after a few weeks for most people. Common reactions include the following:
- Shock, numbness, and disbelief
- Fear about personal safety, the safety of others, and pets
- Concern about losing treasured possessions
- Grief for those who died and for losses at earlier times in your life
- Upsetting images, thoughts, and feelings about the event—These can happen suddenly or because something reminds you of the event.
- Anger, short temper, and increased wariness of others—This may include more arguing or fighting.
- Feeling guilty or helpless
- Feeling restless, anxious, uneasy, or worried
- Physical reactions such as headaches and body pains, stomach aches, appetite changes, sleep difficulties, and increased allergic reactions—Chronic health problems may get worse.
For most people, these reactions fade over time and eventually disappear.
Why are acts of terrorism so troubling?
Acts of terrorism can have such a major impact because they are
- Unexpected—Because they seem random and often come without much warning, they can make us feel unsafe
- Unfamiliar—You have no experience with them. This can make you feel doubtful and insecure.
- Uncontrollable—You feel unable to manage or govern such events and acts.
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Updated 2014, February 10). Maintain a healthy state of mind: Seniors. Retrieved May 31, 2015, from http://emergency.cdc.gov