“A new type of survivor guilt: The term survivor guilt is usually used to describe emotional distress some people feel after surviving a traumatic event in which others have died, such as a natural disaster or terrorist attack.
It has been identified in military veterans, 1/14
those who survived the Holocaust, 9/11 survivors, and emergency first responders. COVID-19 has certainly been a traumatic experience and has had a profound impact on mental health. Around 1,000 people have died by suicide in Australia since it began and 2/14
modelling from the University of Sydney found suicide deaths could rise by 25% annually for the next five years. During COVID-19 we have witnessed the conventional type of survivor guilt associated with surviving the coronavirus when hundreds of thousands haven’t. 3/14
But not everyone is struggling, and this has resulted in a new type of survivor guilt. This emerging type of guilt is characterised by not feeling “impacted enough” by the pandemic. This type of survivor guilt can be seen in the workplace. 4/14
The pandemic has forced many organisations to reduce staffing, causing some remaining employees to feel guilty, according to John Hackston, head of thought leadership at the Myers-Briggs Co. 5/14
Survivor guilt can result in a range of emotions, from shame to a sense of unworthiness or even anger. When emotions are not processed properly, they can impact our physical and mental health and cause depression, anxiety and physical illness. 6/14
It’s OK to be OK during the pandemic: While mental health advocates and support groups are right to remind people who are struggling that it’s “OK not to be OK” during this pandemic, it’s important to remember it’s “OK to be OK” too. 7/14
Professor Kim Felmingham from the University of Melbourne says feeling guilty about being “OK” during these challenging times isn’t just a “perfectly normal” reaction — it’s part of our evolutionary programming. 8/14
That’s because feeling survivor guilt means you are feeling empathy for others who have been less fortunate. In an evolutionary sense, empathy allows us to form close social bonds and connections. “So give yourself a break, don’t beat yourself up if you are feeling guilty.” 9/14
It’s OK to feel OK during the pandemic. Unless we tackle survivor guilt, it could ultimately add to the mental health burden of COVID-19 by manifesting as future depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder. For anyone struggling with these feelings, 10/14
it’s important to remember this pandemic is not your fault. You didn’t do anything wrong. You just happen to be lucky to be healthy, or to live in a place that’s relatively unaffected by the virus, or to work in an occupation that can withstand a recession. 11/14
How to manage guilt: Guilt can sometimes be turned into a positive thing; a sort of moral compass to help give back to the world. If your mind is going down a negative path, perhaps you might like to start a “gratitude journal” to list the things for which you are thankful. 12/14
It could help you settle into a more positive mindset, and allow you to ask yourself whom you can help right now, perhaps financially, physically with something like childcare, or mentally by letting someone unload some of their own stress on you with a simple chat.” 13/14
‘It's OK to be OK: how to stop feeling 'survivor guilt' during COVID-19’. Written by Erin Smith (2020) A/Prof, Disaster and Emergency Response from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. Edited for Thread. 14/14

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More from @drlouisehansen

19 Mar
Narcissism: In Greek mythology, Narcissus was known for his beauty. According to Tzetzes, he rejected all romantic advances, falling in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. 1/30 #March4Justice #EnoughIsEnough
He was so fascinated by himself that, one morning, when he was trying to get still closer to his reflection, he fell into the water and drowned. In his place sprouted a flower bearing his name. 2/30
In Freudian psychiatry, narcissism is an excessive degree of self-esteem or self-involvement, a condition that is usually a form of emotional immaturity (Read my Thread: ‘Why I switched from self-esteem to self-compassion?’). 3/20
Read 30 tweets
18 Mar
How to Prevent Trauma from Becoming PTSD: “The good news is that the intensity of emotional pain always reduces with time. This is not just a trite sentiment, as there are neurological studies that have found the ways the brain works to heal emotional wounds. 1/19 #March4Justice
The brain is geared for survival and is always looking for new threats and information, which means old experiences eventually route to the back of the line to direct your attentional resources to what is new and potentially important. 2/19
My clients often respond to this concept by stating: “This can't be true, because I have been in the same emotional pain for so long, and my traumatic event was years and years ago.”  3/19
Read 19 tweets
18 Mar
Disoriented-Disorganized Attachment Pattern and Increased Risk of Further Traumatization (Part 2/2): “Established insecure attachment patterns are empirically associated with a higher rate of traumatic events and subsequent trauma. 1/23
Further trauma has a disastrous impact on affective and socio-cognitive development. Sexual or aggressive exposures of abuse by a parent, for example, are particularly devastating if they are based on a previous relational context of emotional neglect. 2/23
They may promote “identification with the aggressor” and, as a result, may create intrapsychic relational representations of “perpetrators and victims” in rapid reversals. However, this dominant pattern is based on a massive obstruction of general mentalization functions. 3/23
Read 23 tweets
18 Mar
Psychobiology of Attachment and Trauma—Some General Remarks From a Clinical Perspective (Part 1/2): “Early representatives of psychoanalysis argued that the roots of human social motivation are primarily physical and sensory (hunger, sexuality) 1/31
and that satisfaction and/or frustration of these needs lead to the infant’s initial approach to the mother. John Bowlby (1907–1990) strongly opposed this theoretical approach. Based on numerous empirical observations he developed a different theory: 2/31
the infant’s hunger for its mother’s love and presence is as great as its hunger for food. Attachment is therefore a “primary motivational system” with its own workings. Rene Spitz had made similar empirical observations with orphaned children some years earlier. 3/31
Read 32 tweets
17 Mar
How to use ‘The Hand Model of the Brain’ to Explain our Reaction to Stress: Dr. Daniel Siegel’s hand model of the brain helps children imagine what’s happening inside their brain when they get upset so that they can identify and deal with the emotions more effectively. 1/10
First, let’s see what the hand model of the brain looks like: As its name suggests, you need to use your hand for this. Your wrist is the spinal cord upon which the brain sits, your palm is the inner brainstem, and your thumb is your amygdala (or guard dog). 2/10
If you place your thumb in the palm, you’ll form the limbic system. Your other fingers are your cerebral cortex, and the tips of your fingers are your prefrontal cortex (or wise owl). 3/10
Read 10 tweets
17 Mar
Don’t ostracise drugs users – empathise with them: Dr Gabor Maté was recently awarded the Order of Canada for his work on trauma and addiction. The following is adapted from his book ‘In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction’: 1/37 #March4Justice
“From Abraham to the Aztecs, ancient cultures exacted human sacrifices to appease the gods – that is, to soothe their own anxieties and to placate false beliefs. Today, we have our own version of this, as evidenced by the overdose crisis sweeping North America. 2/37
These lost lives are offered up, we might say, for the appeasement of our own false beliefs and denial. Addicted people are victimised by our society’s disinclination to come to terms with the root sources, psychology and neurobiology of addiction, 3/37
Read 37 tweets

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