Disaster and Healthy State of Mind

Anybody who experiences a disaster is influenced by it, whether directly or indirectly through location, family or friends, or exposure to media coverage of the event. Even if a disaster produces little physical damage, it can bring terror, confusion, and uncertainty into daily life. Strong and varied emotional reactions to such an experience are natural.

Given the uncontrollable nature of disasters, some people question whether they can take steps to plan for catastrophic events. Actually, we know that the more people prepare for the unexpected, the better they deal with these situations. Everyone has their own ways of handling stressful conditions.

Resilience—the ability to adapt well to life's ups and downs—can help manage stress and feelings of anxiety. Everyone can build resilience. It involves thoughts and actions that can be learned and done over time. People from different age can prepare for, respond to, and recover from hard experiences with disaster; they can maintain their healthy state of mind.