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Living with fear

Mon, May 17th 2021, 08:05 AM
About Bahamians Health Nassau Guardian Stories

Are you struggling with a lack of motivation to fully rebuild after Hurricane Dorian, due to fear of loss in future hurricanes? 

Is the impending hurricane season triggering intense feelings of anxiety, or changes in mood?
Are you in a place of feeling emotionally stuck, not knowing how to process the trauma of Dorian, or wondering whether you ought to be much further along in your healing process than you might find yourself today?
Such thoughts and emotions are reasonable and normal, according to psychologist Dr. Gregory Swann, whose insight in an interview with Perspective shed light on roadblocks to disaster restoration that in some quarters, might be taken for granted.
In Dorian’s aftermath, Swann worked with the National Emergency Management Agency’s (NEMA) mental health unit, as part of Grand Bahama’s Mental Health and Psychosocial Support team
His career includes 15 years of work as a disaster psychologist with the United States Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), as well as the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, responding to most of the country’s national and federal declared disasters since 1992.
Regarding feelings of nervousness and fear as the upcoming hurricane season approaches, Swann said, “There would be a reasonable degree of concern to the extent that we would have had Dorian and then the pandemic, and those who were most affected by the hurricane would not have fully processed the impact that Dorian would have had on them physically, emotionally and psychologically.
“And when you compound that with the issues of the pandemic, what you will find in the upcoming weeks as we enter the new hurricane season, there will be a reasonable degree of heightened anxiety. You will find that for persons who live in the northern Bahamas, the expectation of heightened anxiety would be higher.
“Islands like Grand Bahama and Abaco would have had a history of critical incidents that is disproportionate to other areas of The Bahamas. In some cases, there would be heightened levels of behavioral irritation, issues with depression, and issues with prevention, meaning persons would want to leave Grand Bahama or Abaco with any indication of a pending hurricane.

Is the impending hurricane season triggering intense feelings of anxiety, or changes in mood?

Are you in a place of feeling emotionally stuck, not knowing how to process the trauma of Dorian, or wondering whether you ought to be much further along in your healing process than you might find yourself today?

Such thoughts and emotions are reasonable and normal, according to psychologist Dr. Gregory Swann, whose insight in an interview with Perspective shed light on roadblocks to disaster restoration that in some quarters, might be taken for granted.

In Dorian’s aftermath, Swann worked with the National Emergency Management Agency’s (NEMA) mental health unit, as part of Grand Bahama’s Mental Health and Psychosocial Support team

His career includes 15 years of work as a disaster psychologist with the United States Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), as well as the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, responding to most of the country’s national and federal declared disasters since 1992.

Regarding feelings of nervousness and fear as the upcoming hurricane season approaches, Swann said, “There would be a reasonable degree of concern to the extent that we would have had Dorian and then the pandemic, and those who were most affected by the hurricane would not have fully processed the impact that Dorian would have had on them physically, emotionally and psychologically.

“And when you compound that with the issues of the pandemic, what you will find in the upcoming weeks as we enter the new hurricane season, there will be a reasonable degree of heightened anxiety. You will find that for persons who live in the northern Bahamas, the expectation of heightened anxiety would be higher.

“Islands like Grand Bahama and Abaco would have had a history of critical incidents that is disproportionate to other areas of The Bahamas. In some cases, there would be heightened levels of behavioral irritation, issues with depression, and issues with prevention, meaning persons would want to leave Grand Bahama or Abaco with any indication of a pending hurricane.

 

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian

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