With the continuation of digging and rescue operations in the various areas affected by the devastating earthquake in Syria and Turkey, it becomes clear, hour after hour, the enormity and horror of the widespread destruction and devastation it left behind, affecting people and stones, where tens of thousands of dead, wounded and missing people, as well as tens of thousands of stories of torment and pain.
Aleppo is wounded
Among the Syrian cities most affected by the earthquake disaster is the northern city of Aleppo, which serves as the industrial and commercial capital of Syria, which was subjected to great destruction during the years of war.
The local authorities revealed, on Wednesday, that at least 390 people were killed and 750 others injured in Aleppo governorate, in an indefinite toll, in addition to the collapse of more than 50 buildings.
Psychological trauma
I agree
The earthquake is one of the miseries of the people of Aleppo, who are still rebuilding their destroyed city despite the cessation of fighting in it years ago. Even the psychological effects of the disaster on the residents are no less serious than what befell them and their city, in terms of massive loss of life and property.
In this regard, the Syrian psychological consultant Hussam al-Darir, from the city of Aleppo, said in an interview with Sky News Arabia:
- The pressure is very severe on clinics and psychiatric departments in hospitals and health centers in Aleppo, where many residents of the city, especially girls and young children, suffer from panic attacks, crying, hysteria, trembling hands, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, balance disorder, numbness in the back of the head, double eyes, ringing in the ears, stomach confusion, and intestinal disorders And digestive and other transformative symptoms, so that there are cases that reach the point of fainting due to the shock of the earthquake and the terrible physical and psychological damage it left behind, and the fear of new devastating tremors.
- As a psychotherapist, I began to feel weak and depressed about what we see and experience of complex and difficult disease cases. People are in a very critical health and psychological condition, but as psychiatrists we try as much as possible to cohesion and overcome what opposes us, so that we can treat patients and stand with them and provide them with positive energy and hope in the midst of this disaster. In the midst of this dark atmosphere.
- Negative energy is transmitted in such turbulent situations, even through a phone call. For example, a woman receives that energy by telling her through that call from one of her friends that she is sleeping in the street without food or drink, so the recipient of the information becomes dizzy and collapses as a result of hearing that, which triggers It in psychiatry projection mechanism.
- Speech and explanation do not accurately reflect the reality of the terrible, tragic situation that Aleppo and the various Syrian regions affected by this earthquake are experiencing, and we, as psychiatrists, are under enormous pressure due to the dangerous psychological repercussions of what happened on the health and psychological balance of people.
when the earth shakes
The toll is constantly rising
And in the latest death toll in the Syrian government-controlled areas, Health Minister Hassan Muhammad al-Ghobash announced that the number of earthquake victims had risen to 1,262 deaths and 2,285 injuries, in an indefinite toll.
Some Syrian local and media sources, including the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, indicate that the total number of Syrian casualties in all regions of the country, including those outside the control of the Syrian government, such as some parts of Idlib governorate and the countryside of Aleppo, is about 3,500 thousand dead, and thousands wounded and buried under the rubble. .