Public Spark

It is hard to imagine that over 35,000 acres of land have been burned from Santa Barbara to Anaheim, within the last couple of days. We cannot underestimate the emotional strain it can have on people affected. The loss of property and precious artifacts is devastating. It is normal for feelings of nervousness, depression, anxiety to arise from such a catastrophe.

These are some ways to relieve some of the emotional symptoms victims may be feeling:

• Talk about feelings with family, friends and neighbors. Friends and family be of great support. Also it can be therapeutic providing and receiving support from neighbors, who are in the same situation.

• It is important to take a break from cleanup or other disaster-related chores for some relaxing activity.

• Get back into daily routines as soon as you get a sense of normalcy back into life.

• Maintain a healthy diet, get plenty of sleep and daily exercise.

• Reassure children that they are safe. Encourage them to talk about their fears; emphasize that they are not responsible for what happened; hold and hug them frequently.

• Receive support from mental health resources available through American Red Cross, LA Dept of Mental Health or their insurances such as Aetna, Kaiser.

Further Resources:

Helping Handbook(numbers and addresses to great resources)