SUVA: In the wake of Tropical Cyclone Winston, some children and adolescents in Fiji may suffer from emotional and psychological trauma.
Acting national advisor in charge of Psycho-social Support Sub cluster Dr Nirvana Karan says parents, guardians and teachers need to be aware of the “red flag” behaviours that can signal emotional upset or lingering trauma.
“Lots of crying, not sleeping well, being really clingy to their parents or not wanting to go out of the house, being more quiet than usual or they might be asking a lot of questions as in what happened? How did it happen? Or they might be re-enacting certain parts of the disaster through play and drawing.”
Karan says when childhood issues are not resolved; a sense of fear and helplessness can carry over into adulthood, setting the stage for further problems.
She says it’s important right now in the wake of a national disaster for adults to spend more quality time than ever with their children. If they recognise the signs of psychological stress or fear, there is help available.
“There has been a traumatic event that has happened in terms of this disaster and if you’re upset and you’re crying and you’re not happy, these are some normal reactions that you’ll be feeling and crying doesn’t make you a weak person, seeking help doesn’t make you a weak person.”
The Ministry of Health will be deploying teams to priority zones around the country to carry out talanoa sessions and further assessments on the emotional well-being of Fijians.
The Fiji Alliance for Mental Health in collaboration with Tadra Flowers and South Seas Orchids has brought in from Hawaii a child and adolescent psychiatrist specialising in trauma.
Dr Chia Granda is meeting with parents of children badly affected by Tropical Cyclone Winston as well as teachers and health professionals, counsellors and volunteers.
“So the children that we’ve met with to date did ask some very good questions and talked about how some of the things they are seeing in their friends include things like problems with sleep, isolating from their friends, not wanting to return back to school, some kids feeling more irritable or on edge”.
Granda says with early support in strengthening and empowering families, one can reduce the impact of such a disaster on children and young people.
She is in the country for a week and will be visiting the Fiji Red Cross to discuss providing psychological first aid before visiting villages in the interior from Rakiraki.
(Talanoa has defined as full disclosure without concealment. Picture: Village Collective)