Coping with predicaments
The word therapeutic is defined in the Cambridge press dictionary as causing someone to feel happier and more relaxed or to be more healthy. What causes whom to feel what is purely subjective hence we as individuals have our own unique way to process thoughts emotions or feelings. The recent attacks in Sri Lanka that stole many lives quite understandably brings to the surface many emotions in the Sri Lankan communities living around the world. This attack will be processed by two different generations very differently. For example, if you are a British born Tamil Sri Lankan with no direct experience of being in the midst of an attack but your parents do, this will require different approaches to how the same trauma affects individuals in the same home. This is why it is recommend that all of us first check in within ourselves to see how this recent attacks have affected us. Then we check in with others in our lives to see how they are doing and what assistance they may need to assist them.
The challenge of living through trauma is that it has the ability to surface when there are triggers such as the recent attack in Sri Lanka. Within the context of Sri Lanka, let us equally not forget that the whole country and its citizens with it multitude of ethnicity, languages and religion equally have had to face many different layers of war related to trauma.
Being a citizen in the UK, we have many options to seek out the assistance, guidance that we need in order to live by the dictionary definition of therapeutic which is to live a happier healthier life at any given time despite the appearance of a chaotic violent environment. It is important therefore to check with our elders to see how they are feeling about it all and acknowledge their story for the chances of them recollecting their war experience will be high.
Highly recommended too, that when checking in with anyone, either see them in person or have a voice call and not using the social media type chatting services. We all are in the end, individual rivers making our way to the sea and as a river, we are touched by and touch many people and experiences along the way. We are in the end, always asking without words through our human daily narrative, "the story of the I" answers to these questions: Do you see me, Do you hear me, Does what I say matter to you. So give yourself the gift to hear you, see yourself, take what matters to you seriously and then reach out to the person next to you.
This Sri Lankan attack is not one of a Sri Lankan isolation, but one of humanity for we are all but one in the end despite our obvious differences. There are many way to get help, check out your local GP listings for emergency appointments, local Tamil community centres, local samaritans, local and regional trauma helplines. We have options and we encourage you to take up these options that suits you. A healthy individual creates and continues and make up a healthy community.
Let us all keep going.