Counseling Survivors Of Traumatic Events: A Handbook for Those Counseling in Disaster and Crisis

188 Pages·2003·1.03 MB·English

by  Andrew J Weaver

Counseling Survivors of Traumatic
Events
A Handbook for Pastors and Other Helping Professionals
Andrew J. Weaver / Laura T. Flannelly / John D. Preston
Abingdon Press -- Nashville
Copyright Information
To my brother in Christ, Richard L. Binggeli—AJW

To my husband, Kevin J. Flannelly—LTF

To the Reverend Mary Manna Maaga—JDP
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to the Reverend Carolyn L. Stapleton for her exceptional editing
and research skills that added immeasurably to the quality and usefulness of the
text. We are thankful to Dr. Sarah Fogg for her fine contribution to the book in her
chapter on pregnancy loss. Thanks to Karen G. Costa and Michelle Housh for
their help in preparing and editing the manuscript.
I called on your name, O LORD, from the depths of the pit; you heard my plea,
“Do not close your ear to my cry for help, but give me relief!” You came near
when I called on you; you said, “Do not fear!”

—Lamentations 3:55-57
Foreword
C
ounseling Survivors of Traumatic Events is a beckoning to help and be helped
by those who have experienced something unforgettable. Being helped
ourselves through our helping others is bearing witness to the wonder of the
human spirit. This is the paradox of helping the traumatized.
I began my journey as a traumatologist out of frustration. I had witnessed
considerable trauma as a U.S. Marine early in the Vietnam War. When I left the
service, my intention was to focus on child psychology. I had loved working with
children in Vietnam as a volunteer in the Vietnam-Marine Corps people-to-people
program in DaNang. It was a wonderful opportunity to turn my attention away
from destruction and killing to activities of love and nurturing. As an
undergraduate at the University of Hawaii, my hatred of the war I fought in
peaked when Martin Luther King, Jr., was killed in 1968. By the time I was in
graduate school in 1970, I became politically active and began to organize fellow
veterans who shared my rejection of the war. My first demonstration against the
war was my last. That same day I became a trauma researcher.
I arrived in Washington, D.C. on a crisp and chilly March day in 1971 as a
member of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War.1 We were there to change
the world, or at least to change U.S. policies and stop the war in Southeast Asia.
I quickly became disenchanted with being a protester and turned my attention to
the traumatic effects of war on the hundreds of young men around me. Like an
investigative journalist, I began to circulate among my fellow vets and to use the
research interviewing skills I had acquired in my graduate program at
Pennsylvania State University. I quickly realized that my calling was as a
chronicler of the costs of war being paid by those who fought in Vietnam. I
decided to leave the demonstrating to those with a more political bent and the
necessary personality and skills.
My first interview was with a combat veteran I'll call Mike. He was a young man
who had, like me, lost friends in Vietnam and came home disillusioned. Unlike
me, however, his life had gone from bad to worse. He had been married twice
and was then divorced. He abused both drugs and alcohol. Until we spoke, he
had never once talked about his time in Vietnam. In contrast, I had written about
my experiences both during the war and afterwards. As I listened to Mike speak
of his combat experiences and what followed, I realized how fortunate I was. He
was clearly traumatized by what had happened and was unable to let go of the
emotions stuck to his memories. Another thing I learned from Mike was that he
was searching for answers to some fundamental questions, answers that,
perhaps, would give him peace.
I went on to interview and survey thousands of survivors of trauma. Over the
years, I have learned that the questions Mike was struggling to answer were not
unlike those of others who have been traumatized. Everywhere I go, I am asked
about the best way to counsel survivors of traumatic events. People want me to
boil down all of the research, theory, and practical knowledge into a set of
strategies that will work. The trick, of course, is finding the best method for a
particular person at the right time under the right conditions. Yet even the ideal
counseling approach that enjoys the best evidence of effectiveness cannot cure
traumatic stress unless a survivor can find the answers he or she is seeking.
Even though we have devised extraordinary drugs and techniques to manage the
symptoms of traumatic stress, there is no genuine peace until a survivor is able
to address with satisfaction at least three universal questions. These are:
• Why did this happen?
• Why did it happen to me (us)?
• How can I ever put my life back together again and feel okay after
knowing what I know?
It is at this point that a person is face-to-face with a counselor, seeking the
answers to these fundamental questions when science, technology, practice
skills, and all of the other competencies of modern counseling are silent. The
answers must come from the survivor's own spirituality and faith. There is no one
better prepared to enable these persons to search and find the answers than the
clergy who read this book.
It is likely that you, the reader, are a pastor. This volume is about helping those
who have been touched by frightening or disturbing experiences. The authors
wrote it especially for you because you are the most likely person to whom
survivors of trauma will turn. Natural disasters, car crashes, suicide, torture, rape,
combat, and other traumatic events challenge our faith or make it stronger (or
both). This book provides an extraordinary amount of knowledge—not only about
what survivors have endured, but also about what they need not just to endure,
but to thrive by transforming their tragedies into triumphs.
This wise and varied team of practitioners represents numerous work contexts
and approaches. They have designed a one-stop reference source for helping
the traumatized. And there are lots of good examples—of both problems and
solutions. Each chapter addressing the sixteen traumatic events includes
information not only about psychological counseling, but also how a pastor (no
matter the culture, nationality, language, or denomination) can utilize faith and
the religious community to serve as a resource for healing and can facilitate
answering those fundamental questions.
I know this volume will also help you assist those who serve in combat in the
future and those they leave behind. Perhaps as a result, fewer lives in the times
ahead will be broken or broken as long as they were in previous wars.
After thirty years of research on how people are affected by trauma—in both
good and bad ways—and how they can be transformed, we know that faith and
pastoral care matter. Religion and spirituality can provide the necessary stepping
stones for the traumatized struggling to answer the haunting questions that, if left
unaddressed, will be major stumbling blocks to peace of mind and experiencing
God's presence.
God bless you in your important work. Please contact me or the Green Cross
Foundation (www.GreenCross.org) if we can help you.—Charles R. Figley, Ph.D.
Charles R. Figley, Ph.D., is a professor in the School of Social
Work at Florida State University. He is former editor of the Journal
of Traumatic Stress and current editor of the international journal
Traumatology. He is author of more than 150 scholarly works,
including eighteen books, and the recipient of numerous awards
from universities and learned societies throughout the world.
How to Use This Book
C
ounseling Survivors of Traumatic Events: A Handbook for Pastors and Other
Helping Professionals is designed to be a text for those in training for pastoral
ministry, as well as a practical resource for women and men already serving in
ministry. The volume addresses the aftermath of a wide array of traumatic events
(such as natural disasters, criminal violence, catastrophic accidents, life-
threatening illnesses) and the mental health difficulties, especially post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD), that may be experienced as a result. In the light of the
threat of global terrorism, it is especially important that those in ministry
understand how to help guide persons through very difficult places.
Part 1 offers information about the important role that clergy and the faith
community serve in the mental health care of persons who have survived an
intensely horrifying or deeply disturbing event. This section spells out the need
for special expertise by pastors and other religious professionals as to how to
recognize and address psychological trauma. The scientific evidence that
nonpunitive, nurturing religious beliefs and practices serve a healing function for
those traumatized is summarized.
The heart of the book is the case studies found in Part 2, which use real-life
situations and highlight practical implications for pastors working with the
traumatized. This format incorporates relevant research and identifies the needs
of persons suffering from psychological trauma. The case studies are
multidisciplinary in approach, integrating clinical knowledge in pastoral care,
psychology, nursing, psychiatry, gerontology, sociology, medicine, social work,
and marriage and family therapy, along with current scientific findings on the role
of religion in mental and physical health care. The volume recognizes that the
difficulties individuals face in the aftermath of horrific life events do not stand in
isolation from one another, but are interrelated. For example, the chapter
involving psychological trauma in police officers addresses PTSD, substance
abuse, and depression.
The book is designed so that a reader can easily locate information on specific
issues related to psychological trauma for which individuals and families seek
help. It is a practical, easy-to-use guide on how to assess problems and respond
to them. The table of contents provides the subject matter of sixteen traumatic
events that often affect human beings.
Each case provides an example of a person who has survived a specific
traumatic event and is in need of help. Included in each chapter is information
about how a religious professional would assess the problem, what aspects of
the situation are most important, how to identify the major issues, specific
directions for what pastors and congregations can do, when to refer for
professional assistance, and resources that can provide help. National
organizations (often with toll-free numbers and Internet addresses) that supply
information and support for individuals and families facing these issues are
identified for each concern addressed. Cross-cultural aspects are discussed as
well
Part 3 of the book has a section on responding to different types of crisis
situations as well as guidelines on self-care for religious professionals working
with traumatized persons. There is also a section on how and when to make a
referral. Technical terms are defined in the glossary at the end of the book.
The text is written for people of all faiths, with an appreciation for the richness of
the intergenerational and multicultural diversity found in religious communities.
The authors are persons of faith with specialties in mental health.
Dr. Weaver is a clinical psychologist and ordained United Methodist minister who
has served rural and urban parishes. He is the Director of Research at The
HealthCare Chaplaincy in New York City. He has written over ninety scientific
articles and book chapters and has coauthored eight books. Dr. Flannelly is a
Roman Catholic laywoman and Associate Professor of Nursing at the University
of Hawaii. She has worked extensively as a clinical nurse specialist and has
written several articles on the role of spirituality in nursing. Dr. Preston is
Associate Professor of Psychology at Alliant University in Sacramento, California,
and an active layman in The United Methodist Church. He has written over thirty
scientific articles and book chapters and has authored or coauthored fourteen
books.
Part One--Introduction
Clergy, Faith, and Psychological Trauma
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lergy need the skills to recognize and assist those who come to them for
counsel in the aftermath of psychological trauma. Many of these persons may be
suffering what mental health professionals have identified as post-traumatic
stress disorder, or PTSD. The word “trauma” is derived from the Greek word
meaning “wound.” Just as a physical trauma can cause suffering by wounding
and disabling the body, a psychological trauma can cause suffering by
overwhelming the thoughts and feelings.
Graphic accounts of the effects of extreme stress on human beings have been
documented in literature since Homer's Odyssey and Samuel Pepys's diary of
the disastrous London fire of 1666 (Daly, 1983). Freud recognized the effects of
psychological trauma in childhood during the nineteenth century, but it has only
been in the wake of the devastating wars of the twentieth century—particularly
the return of Vietnam War veterans to the United States—that a concerted
scientific effort has been marshaled to create an effective model to understand
the symptoms that result from extreme stress (Van der Kolk, 1987). Most recent,
the model for understanding psychological trauma, or PTSD, has been applied to
understanding reactions to the criminal victimization that plagues our society,
such as rape, robbery, assault, child abuse, elder abuse, and spouse battering
(Herman, 1992).
Post-traumatic stress should usually be considered a normal reaction to an
abnormally stressful situation (Lifton, 1988). PTSD is not a sign of being
“emotionally weak” or “mentally ill.” Virtually anyone exposed to the “shock effect”
of extreme stress will find ordinary coping processes are overwhelmed. Post-
traumatic stress disorder is diagnosed when a person responds with intense fear,
helplessness, or horror to a traumatic experience that involves actual or
threatened death, serious injury, or a threat to the physical well-being of self or
others (APA, 2000). The traumatic event is reexperienced in specific ways, such
as in recurrent and intrusive distressing recollections or dreams of the event.
Additionally, the person often persistently avoids situations associated with the
trauma and has emotional numbness in general. Often there is hypervigilance
and irritability. Post-traumatic stress disorder becomes the diagnosis when these
symptoms persist for more than one month.
Research has revealed that exposure to several categories of traumatic stressors
can precipitate the symptoms of PTSD, including life-threatening illnesses,
criminal victimization (rape, assault, robbery, spouse battering, child abuse,
kidnapping, elder abuse), natural disasters (floods, wildfires, earthquakes,
hurricanes, tornadoes), human-made disasters (war, death camps, torture,
terrorism, gang violence), catastrophic accidents (automobile, airplane,
industrial), and workplace exposure for rescue workers, firefighters, health care
personnel, and police officers (APA, 2000). Clergy who are increasingly being
exposed to dangerous situations will also be vulnerable to the effects of extreme
stress (Weaver, 1992a). When these stressors involve a serious threat to one's
life or physical integrity, one's children, spouse, close relatives, or friends;
sudden destruction of one's home or community; or seeing another person who
has been, or is being, seriously injured or killed as the result of an accident or
physical violence, PTSD symptoms may result (APA, 2000).
Many People Suffer from Psychological Trauma
PTSD represents a significant public health concern and warrants the attention of
clergy and the religious community. Research has discovered that about 60
percent of men and 50 percent of women have at least one traumatic experience
in their lifetimes, while 10 percent of men and 6 percent of women have four or
more traumatic experiences. About 8 percent of Americans have PTSD at some
point in their lives, making it the fourth most common psychiatric disorder
(Kessler et al., 1995). According to the National Center for PTSD, every year as
many as 17 million people in North America survive or provide relief services for
disasters such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, chemical
explosions, toxic spills, riots, mass killings, and terrorist acts. In addition, in any
given year, one in one hundred Americans will be injured in a motor vehicle
accident, and about 9 percent of them will develop PTSD (Blanchard and
Hicking, 1997).
Churches, mosques, and synagogues have many veterans who are suffering
from psychological trauma. Among Vietnam-era veterans, a study found that 15.2
percent of men and 8.5 percent of women suffer from PTSD fifteen or more years
following their military service (Weiss et al., 1992). It is estimated that 830,000
Vietnam veterans (49 percent) “still experience clinically significant distress and
disability from the symptoms of PTSD” (Weiss et al., 1992, p. 365).
It is also becoming clear that for some elderly veterans, the experience of combat
has far-reaching effects on mental health. Almost 25 percent of American men
aged sixty-five or older served in combat in the Second World War or Korea
(Spiro, Schnurr, and Aldwin, 1993), and many of these men continue to suffer
from the experience, especially those who were prisoners of war (Sutker and
Allain, 1996).
In addition, high numbers of young Americans suffer from PTSD as a result of
criminal violence. Exposure to violence among teens in the U.S. is at near
epidemic levels. The rate of violent victimization for those aged twelve to
nineteen is twice that of adults over the age of twenty-five (Bureau of Justice
Statistics, 1993). Adolescent males from large urban areas are at the highest risk
of victimization and of witnessing severe violence, such as stabbings and
shootings. In a study of adolescents and young adults (aged fourteen to twenty-