Laval tragedy: after the shock, how to deal with the trauma?

The tragedy that occurred Wednesday morning in Laval sowed fear and incomprehension, and there is no doubt that it will have a significant effect on those who have experienced it from near or far. But not everyone will react the same way, and the symptoms of distress could persist or even arise months later, warns a psychologist.

The images of the Société de transport de Laval (STL) bus stuck in the Ste-Rose educational daycare center in Laval and of the worried parents running to pick up their child will remain etched in people’s minds. In the hours following the tragedy, the authorities made sure to provide psychological support to the relatives of the victims and to the responders.

“Not everyone will react the same way,” says the president of the Order of Psychologists of Quebec, the D^D Christine Grou. “It’s a shock wave, and we are in a period of acute stress. People whose children were in this daycare will potentially not sleep well, and it will not be easy, tomorrow or the day after, to take the children to another daycare. »

understand death

Children in the daycare, who are preschoolers, will need special attention. “A child under the age of five does not fully understand what death is and does not understand that this death is irreversible. There are children who will never see their friends again. Some children will take time to come back because they are injured. We will have to explain it by reassuring the children who remain, ”underlines the psychologist. “Some children are going to be more vulnerable than others. »

This does not mean that all children will be able to talk about the event. In such cases, we must not force the floor, insists the D^D Group. “There are children who won’t want to talk about it, others who won’t be able to,” she says. “You just have to give time to time and be attentive, attentive and present. »

Each individual will react according to his environment. Are the victims and their relatives well supported or not? Do they live in a stable environment or not? According to the D^D Grou, it will be necessary to detect the signs of distress in the weeks to come, both in children and in adults, whether it is fear, irritability, a feeling of being disoriented or not not be able to make decisions. “It’s in a month that we will know if there are people who develop a post-traumatic syndrome,” she says.

However, the psychologist mentions that the symptom should not be “prescribed”. “To prescribe the symptom is to say that we are so convinced that everyone is going to be traumatized that if some are not, they will not feel normal. »

The general public will not be spared, because not only does the event affect children, a vulnerable population, but it occurred in Quebec and not in a distant country. All day Wednesday, the images of the drama paraded continuously, and this is likely to continue in the days to come. “It can help morally not to overexpose yourself to negative images because at that time, the brain encodes that there is nothing else than that,” says Dr.^D Group.

An incomprehensible gesture

The circumstances surrounding the event remain unclear. According to witnesses, the bus driver was confused and agitated after the tragedy and it was difficult to control him. However, we must avoid drawing too hasty conclusions about his mental state, believes the D^D Christine Grou. ” It is [un geste] so inexplicable and so incomprehensible that we need to make sense of it. The reason that pushes us to want to make sense of this point is that it gives us the impression of having a certain control over something, ”she explains. “I think that what we don’t know, we shouldn’t invent it. But there is a huge need to make sense of this event. It is normal in humans. »

The victims and their relatives, as well as the emergency workers and the driver’s colleagues, receive psychological support, but the D^D Grou can’t help but be worried about the months to come. Symptoms could occur later, six months after the tragedy. In some cases, the sequelae may appear non-existent, but a later event could lead to an overreaction. “I’m concerned about the help people might need offline. In the field of mental health, accessibility is not obvious. If, within a year, people develop symptoms, will help be there as well? she asks herself.

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