Patrick Alécian, psychiatrist who contributed to the creation of the Maisons des adolescents in France, estimates this Sunday on franceinfo that the European countries which welcome Ukrainians must prepare for “receive these families but also the troubles that will emerge at the end of this traumatic experience”.
franceinfo: What traces does a war leave?
Patrick Alecian: In times of war itself, the reactions of both children and adults are rather appropriate. They seek to protect themselves, we sometimes have children who adopt measures of over-maturity, who protect their loved ones. Unfortunately, it won’t last long. At some point, these civilians will express a difficulty, and at that time, the entire international reception organization that has been put in place will be very valuable, to receive these families but also the troubles that will emerge when they leave this traumatic experience. In the first days, it is necessary to ensure what is primary: food, housing, presence, help to communicate with relatives who have not been able to leave the country.
Do traumas really occur with a “delay effect”?
In the case of civilian populations, yes. In the case of the military, it is more complicated. Even if the very first seconds after a bombardment or the disappearance of several military personnel around, there is an adaptation, but dissociative processes appear very quickly. They are also adaptive processes: they are people who recover from the trauma like a bombardment, but with a completely different sensoriality in the first hours in order to be able to survive.
What about the volunteers who fight, armed physically but not necessarily mentally?
Most militiamen have experience with weapons already, but some volunteers may be a little more naive in how to engage in combat, and therefore more exposed than the military. The concern is also to know how the professional soldiers receive these militiamen. There is a very delicate coordination in these moments.