Healing the wounds from violence

About one year after the last major crisis in Jos, I gave a questionnaire that is commonly used to diagnose PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, to students at the University of Jos. PTSD is the long-term emotional pain that results from experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. I found that 31% of these students could be […]

About one year after the last major crisis in Jos, I gave a questionnaire that is commonly used to diagnose PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, to students at the University of Jos. PTSD is the long-term emotional pain that results from experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. I found that 31% of these students could be diagnosed with PTSD. For comparison, RAND Corporation found that only 14% of American soldiers who have returned from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have PTSD. This means that twice as many students who simply live in Jos suffer from the emotional wounds of trauma, as compared to soldiers returning from battle.
PTSD is a serious mental health condition that is hurting individuals, families, and communities. Furthermore, since people who have PTSD have difficulty focusing on their work and are more likely to become addicted to illicit substances such as alcohol, PTSD is also hindering national development. Just as national agencies and NGOs are working to treat and prevent diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria, proactive steps must also be taken to treat and prevent PTSD for the wellbeing of society.
Just like a person who has malaria needs treatment to recover, a person who has PTSD needs treatment to recover from their emotional wounds. As mentioned last week, Joseph Obaje Sunny developed PTSD after losing his mother on his birthday and having his house looted and destroyed in a crisis less than one month later. He suffered with the emotional wounds of the trauma for well over a year. The emotional pain caused him to have bitterness in his heart, and he wanted revenge on the people who destroyed his house. His physical health also suffered because of the emotional wounds, causing him to lose weight and have bad dreams.
Many events worked together to help Sunny begin the path of healing. A number of Sunny’s friends and mentors were involved in peace efforts. They would talk to Sunny about the need to forgive the people who destroyed his house. One day, Sunny began writing a poem about the difficulties in life. As he was writing, he realized the necessity of forgiveness as a Christian. At this point, Sunny actively sought out the people who burnt his house and offered them the gift of forgiveness. He also began participating in programs that taught about forgiveness, peace, and healing from trauma. Using what he learnt in these programs, Sunny began reaching out to others who experienced even greater loss to help them also heal from their emotional wounds. Sunny also finds healing in his writing, including a movie script about Muslim and Christian youth coming together in harmony.
The journey of healing has been long and there are many things that have helped Sunny recover from his emotional wounds: offering forgiveness to those who hurt him, participating in trauma healing and peace workshops, helping others who have also been affected by trauma, and writing. However, Sunny testifies that the most powerful healing touch has been the peace that he finds in God.
If you are suffering from the emotional wounds of trauma, remember that healing will take time. Like a broken bone, healing will not occur overnight. However, there are steps you can take to help in the journey of healing. First, seek support from family and friends. You might not feel comfortable discussing your traumatic experiences yet, but spending time with loved ones can provide a great source of comfort and encouragement. Research has shown that having strong support from family and friends is very important for healing from a traumatic experience.
You also might consider finding an organization that offers trauma healing workshops. There are a number of organizations in Jos that are trained to help others recover from the wounds of trauma. Oftentimes, trauma healing workshops include religious teachings that can help a person make sense of what they have suffered, as well as the religious values that can help a person recover, such as coming to a place of forgiveness and finding peace in God. Trauma healing workshops also generally help a person think about what they can learn from the experience, and how the experience can even help them grow into a better person.
If trauma healing workshops are not available, then it can be helpful to find other people who have suffered similar trauma and form a support group. Listening and sharing with others who have similar experiences can be a powerful source of support. Also, learning how others have coped with their pain and grown as a person can also inspire you and give you ideas on how you can cope.
There are also professional mental health services that can help a person heal from trauma. The primary strategy is talk therapy, which involves talking with a mental health professional either one-on-one or in a group setting. Generally, talk therapy includes information about trauma, relaxation and anger control skills, strategies to help a person deal with their feelings about the event, and coping skills for managing PTSD symptoms.
Because support from family and friends is important for healing emotional wounds, it is important for all of us to know how to help somebody who has experienced trauma. Most important is to just be available, to listen, to jist, or to help them with any needs they may have. Listen well when they share what happened, even if they say the same thing repeatedly. Also listen when they express their anger and fear without quick judgment. Be patient with them as they are healing. Ensure that they are taking good care of their body by properly eating and resting. Help them set small goals for their life and help them open up to others who can provide assistance. It will likely be difficult supporting a person who has recently experienced trauma because of their anger and pain. However, your ongoing support and patience will go a long way in helping them heal.
However, these “treatments” for PTSD are ineffective in the overall battle for positive emotional health. The best way to fight HIV/AIDS is not to wait until a person has contacted the disease and then provide treatment. Instead, most efforts in the fight against HIV/AIDS are geared towards trying to prevent people from contracting the disease in the first place. Likewise, the best way to fight PTSD is not to wait until a person has experienced trauma. Instead, efforts need to be made to remove violence from the society. If we can reduce the amount of trauma that people experience, particularly through violence, then the battle toward defeating PTSD is almost won.
Individuals, families, communities, religious institutions, and the nation all have roles to play in eradicating violence. Individuals need to be careful in how they think and discuss other people. The rhetoric of dehumanizing others (e.g., “they are like animals”) and of retaliation contribute to the high rate of violence. We must train ourselves to be compassionate and understanding towards others. Furthermore, we must foster forgiveness in our hearts, even for the small wrongs that we suffer. When we forgive our friend for not greeting us in the market, then we are more likely to forgive our much larger wounds.
Families must also reduce the violence in their homes by using nonviolent strategies for resolving conflict. Furthermore, parents must be aware of their children’s movements to ensure they are not getting into trouble, and use appropriate disciplinary strategies when their children go astray. Communities need to provide positive opportunities for youth to develop their abilities and pursue their dreams, both through community organizations and employment opportunities. Community members also need to put strategies in place to actively prevent violent crisis from occurring when conflict arises. Religious institutions need to emphasize religious teachings on compassion for others, brotherly love, and reconciliation. Finally, the nation needs to strengthen the justice system so that those who engage in violence are held accountable for their actions, which will deter others from engaging in violence in the future.
Working together, each doing what little we can, we can reduce the amount of violence in society, which will improve the emotional wellbeing of all.
(concluded)