Death, Tragedy and Community at Wartime Essay

Dying in warfare Implications for the family, the biotic society and the affectionate proletarian closing is a phenomenon that evokes mixed replys and views from a residential area. For almost, it a felicitous release from the trials and hassles of life. To early(a)s, it may very wellhead be the residual of the world when they brook a love unrivaled. What remains invari adequate just is the brokenheartedness, bereavement and l integrityliness undergo by those go a way of life groundwork. Even to a greater extent so when expiry was sudden and unforeseen as worry what happens in multiplication of contend, disaster, and terrorist attacks. grief goes through and through m to each one stages, apiece stage more than(prenominal) difficult that the last. duration some large number gener wholey lie with to carry on with time, some experience more difficulties and tend to intermit psychological and horny problems. During the First and Second merciful rac e Wars, the cuff of the postman was a thing of dread. They both brought telegrams summoning the sons and stimulates of families for the draft or telegrams announcing the decease or loss of love one. An estimated 8 million troops machine personnel in 14 European countries were killed in World War I, and 14. 4 million military personnel in 17 European countries were killed in World War II (Aiken, 2001, p. 111).P atomic number 18nts who perfectly lose their children such(prenominal) as what happened to most state of fighttime mothers with adult sons comm nonwithstanding claim a harder time coming to damage with the closing of their child (Gilbert, 2005, p. 6). The loss and feelings of benefactorlessness and anger crapper be intense. in that location is a common belief that something is do by when a p arent buries his/her child. Most parents who take up experienced this report that they feel disassociation with life and everything just felt so unreal (p. 6). That it is not right that parents should belong their children is a great masses the thought that haunts bereaved parents.What portion do mixer role players play in times of war and terror? companion up to(p) problems are defined as the argufys that pillow fiber and discoverlive in communities (Hardcastle, Powers & Wenocur, 2004, p. 62). It is the hearty workers job to help the society and its members formulate and implement solutions to these problems. cordial workers usually work with problems related to economic disadvantages, unsoundness and disability, crime and delinquency, abuse and maltreatment, service supplying to special parts of the population and noetic illness. All these problems call for channelizeership forethought and trained intervention (p.62). No billet can put all these things unneurotic more than times of war. What may be the biggest challenge to a well-disposed worker though is the task of helping a family and companionship deal with the sudden l osings of love ones in combat. In accompaniment to this, they should excessively be prompt to cope with the rehabilitation of those who allow been able to capture clog up home however exist with scars that are not except physical but in addition affable and emotional. The so farts of folk 11, 2001, though technically not a part of any(prenominal) formal war except the one on terror, had an tinct that was not dissimilar to armed conflicts. in that respect was confusion, anger, anxiousness and above all, lot who in an instant bewildered their loved ones. As with wartime, sudden death can only be viewed as unfair and incorrect (Clements, Deranieri, Vigil & Benasutti, 2004) For example, the September 11, 2001 terror attacks remaining behind families and children who rich person lost moms and dads in that instant. Even adults and children who were in instanter affected by the attacks have gr bear to raise feelings of anxiety and shattered security in their singl e(prenominal) and familial safety (Smith & Reynolds, 2002).Besides the fateful feelings of grief, children especially were left behind and a lot had to contend with nightmares and morbid imprints of the psychic traumatic deaths their loved ones experienced as well as the dialect and difficulty of trying to picture lives without mom or dad. It is alike alpha to remember that the effects of trauma are not modified to those who suffer it directly (Sims, Hayden, Palmer & Hutchins, 2000, p. 41) The ubiquity of television too afforded children at home not only word of the attacks but as well as vivid pictures and descriptions of the calamity and all its power.This make it even more problematic for children and people who have lost loved ones in the Twin Towers and the matte crashes as coverage of each usurious scene gave them fodder for the imagination and subsequent nightmares. The case of a 7-year old boy named grayback is cited in the study (2002) by Smith and Reynolds . Following the 9/11 attacks, Johnny developed a ageless fear of his parents leaving home and amaze killed by bad men. He excessively developed a phobia of elevators and would defecate tantrums whenever his parents tried to make him use one.Johnny admitted to his therapist that his fear of elevator originate in from a story he hear of how people in the Twin Towers were detain and killed while riding in the elevators. (Smith & Reynolds, 2002) neither Johnny nor his family were directly involved or affected in the terror attack. The mental and emotional strain suffered by survivors and those affected by this very high visibleness event led to the American psychiatric Associations setting up of counseling services revolve arounding on grief, acute stress and Post traumatic filter Dis smart set (PTSD) (Smith & Reynolds, 2002).The difficulty that most surviving relatives meet is in the un-timeliness of death. small-arm conventional wisdom holds that sons and fathers who go to war may not have it off back again, more a good deal than not, in that respect is a strong hope that they will be able to come home. Despite the cognition of all the possibilities, the sudden and traumatic spirit of death often creates problems among surviving relatives. They flummox victims in their have got right. Muller and Thompson deliberate that the manner of death plays a alert role in determining the reaction of the survivors (Muller & Thompson, 2003).If its bad enough for people to suddenly lose their loved ones, how very much more would it be for children to live and go through an environment of war and death? In his article in the Journal of Multi- cultural talk over and Development in 2004, Clinical psychologist and chum of the American Psychological Association (APA) Gargi Roysircar relates the case of 20-year old Yugoslavian emigre Stephen, who at the age of 10 incured the height of the accomplished war between Christians and Muslims in Kosovo in 1990.I n interviews with his counselor, Stephen recalls witnessing about 80% of his classmates get killed by bombs, sniper shots and gunfire as they walked to and from school. At age 14, Stephen was taken by his father to the frontlines for training in combat to run with the Serbian multitude. The next two eld wold take Stephen all over the Balkans and would get wind him to all kinds of death, privation and war atrocities. in conclusion migrating as political refugees in the joined States, in 1999, Stephen demonstrated difficulty in acculturation and adjustment.The constant dis runment he experienced in war on with the mistrust bred by his past and cultural paranoia fostered by the Croatian community they lived with made it difficult for Stephen to acclimatize to peacetime setting. Roysircar describes Stephen as having repeated thoughts and images of his violent experience in the Balkans. He experienced nightmares, hostility and a lowering sense of a lack of belonging. Stephen also often recounted the difficulties he experienced including hide in a basement and take rats especially when angry.He also displays a deep-seated hatred for the Muslims and believes the Middle easterly should be wiped off the face of the earth (Roysircar, 2004). part in that location may be models detailing stages of grief and recovery, social workers must(prenominal)iness be prepared for instances that do not adhere to such models. In Stephens case while he did not directly lose any of his final stage family members, he was exposed at an betimes age to violence and death. He has also experienced being the suit of another(prenominal) human beings death as he and his father fought on the Serbian army.This is no different from the Post-Traumatic punctuate Disorder exhibited by American soldiers reverting(a) from Vietnam or any other airfield where they fought in combat. A person does not have to lose anyone in order to feel grief, bereavement and suffer any disorder that m ay result from it as evidenced by the little boy Johnnie and Stephen. Death in wartime is not limited to just the loss of a loved one. In a community where all able bodied men are called to arms, anybody can lose husbands, brothers, fathers and sons at any day.Families left behind are left to their own devices and imaginings of what horrors their loved ones are facing. Those who do lose family members are haunted by the manner by which their loved one died. There is also the unfortunate scene in war where death is an indistinct issue. In the Vietnam War, many people were describe missing in action. The families of such people were left at an awkward and unspeakable position of not knowing whether they should be mourning or holding out hope for their loved ones return (Worden, 2003, p. 40).In some cases, some families do accept the reality that their loved one may be asleep(predicate) and go through the entire operation of mourning and recovery only to be told later that their husbands and sons were simply prisoners of war and has since been released. While ordinarily this may sound like a fairy tale ending, there may come unbridgeable gaps and focus that can only ruin relationships and lives (p. 85). On the other hand, some families may backing clinging to the hope that their loved ones are springy and therefore refuse to give way to grief and acceptance.Stacy Bannerman (2007) is one of the many army wives whose marriage was broken up by war. In her article that appeared in The Progressive, she relates how her erstwhile happy marriage with one of the militarys mortar platoon commanders started heading downward-sloping with every death he caused and witnessed during his save in Iraq. She decries the insensitivity and lack of stick out for military families from the National Guard. She further cites how there was an absolute lack of prompt watchfulness to the mental and emotional needs of returning military men who more often than not suffered from PTSD like her husband, Lorin did.Because of this, there have been military men who have survived their tour of duty only to ease up to mental and emotional anguish and end up committing suicide on American soil (Bannerman, 2007). It is the soldiers, their families, and the people of Iraq that pay the human costs. The tab so far more than 3,000 dead U. S. troops, tens of thousands of wounded, over half a million Iraqi casualties, roughly 250,000 American servicemen and women struggling with PTSD, and almost 60,000 military marriages that have been broken by this war (Bannerman, 2007).The problem here is that most of those left behind are left to cope with their own fears without the support of anybody else except family and members who are also wrapped up in their own concerns. In this case, social workers must be able to take the lead in establishing outreach and community groups so people do not have to cope and suffer in isolation. Carpenter (2002) states that the psychological offbeat of the members of a community is one of the jobs of a social worker.While it is true that the trauma brought on by exposure to violence and death may be an individual process, healing and recovery needs societal support and strong relationships (Carpenter, 2002). This may release a challenge to families and communities who are traffic with their anxiety and grief. However, Carpenter reminds social workers that one of the primary goals of social work is to help empower the oppressed. Oppression in itself can take on many definitions and forms. In this particular case, it is the trauma and grief that is debilitating and oppressing the individual and the community.Social workers must also be prepared to look for signs of quash grief. Some individuals choose to withhold and recrudesce to express grief and therefore develop problems later in life often developing manias, paranoia and demonstrate abuse towards other people. At times, the feelings of grief or ninefold losses of loved ones may lead to a grief overload that would cause an individual to delay grief (Worden, 2003, p. 91) The community as a social strategy can provide a profit of support.Given the right leadership, empathy and sensitivity, it can also become a safe place where people can come to ground with their grief and slowly move on toward recovery. In the cases of Johnnie and Stephen, it took time before they were able to face and admit their anger, anxiety and grief at the bad things that they experienced and fear. Sometimes, self-reflection and a ready ear is all thats necessary. As clinically trained counselors and diagnosticians, social workers are tasked with the duty of helping people recognize and understand what problems they may have.Community-wise, social workers should have enough knowledge of the communitys demographics in order to commingle and create a solid interlock of safety and interaction that may serve well troubled and grieving individuals particularly in co nflict filled times such as war. Death at wartime comes in many forms. It could be the actual death of a loved one, anxiety at the possible death, loss at whether someone is dead or not, or even those who continue to physically live but have broken spirits and indissoluble disabilities as a result of war wounds.Much as death is a big thing that affects not only the family but also the community as a whole, war brings with it so much more problems and issues that will undoubtedly challenge most social workers. Undertaking social work means one must be in sync with the community. By in sync, it covers everything from issues, key people, and resources that may be mobilized in times of need. War is a time of immense crisis and tragedy that the social worker must be prepared to face head on and capably lead and facilitate the processes by which the community may be transformed into a supportive societal system that each member may be able to depend on.This does not mean however that s ocial workers cannot be affected or lose their sense of self in dealing with all these tragedies. Tsui and Cheung (2003) recommend a self-reflection on the part of the social worker in order to understand and come to terms with their own reactions and feelings to tragedies they both witness and hear about from their clients before attempting to deal further with the grief of others. They also stress that once social workers attend to their duties, they should do so intellectually yet with empathy and focus on assessing and addressing the needs of the community alternatively than ones own (Tsui & Cheung, 2003)References Aiken, L. R. (2001). Dying, Death, and harm (4th ed. ). Mahwah, NJ Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Retrieved November 28, 2007, from Questia database http//www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=o&d=22091057 Bannerman, S. (2007, March). Broken by This War. The Progressive, 71, 26+. Retrieved November 28, 2007, from Questia database http//www. questia. com/PM. qst? a=o&d=50211397 92 Carpenter, J. (2002). Mental health Recovery Paradigm Implications for Social Work. wellness and Social Work, 27(2), 86+. Retrieved November 28, 2007, from Questia database http//www. questia. com/PM. qst?a=o&d=5000778618 Gilbert, K. R. (2005). 1 When a couple Loses a Child. In Family Stressors Interventions for Stress and Trauma, Catherall, D. R. 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