When will It stop?

As if it wasn’t enough to go hungry, without shelter and little drinkable water, fragile minds have to cope with the death of loved ones and friends, and the destruction of communities that were once home.

Imagine being completely petrified of when the next earthquake will hit, when the ground will shake and buildings will crash down around or on you, a fear so disabling you can’t think rationally, a fear like some monster in a child’s closet. It keeps building until you can’t sleep or think. Imagine losing your family, a father, mother or child. The grief and despair are physically and mentally disabling for strong adults. Imagine the effects of being suddenly orphaned on a child.

You can give water to the thirsty, feed the hungry, rebuild homes, and help mend broken limbs, but if you don’t take care of broken minds all is lost.

Reports are coming out of Haiti that one in five Haitians are suffering severe psychic trauma – understandably enough. Haiti was and remains a war zone, in effect. Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is common. You can see it in the faces of those suffering – you don’t have to be a doctor to see the fear and/or emptiness in the eyes of men, women and children. How can we expect them to adjust to post-quake everyday life – which itself is traumatic enough?

Some individuals will not be able to cope without professional help. What little medical assistance is currently available in Haiti is focused on taking care of physical wounds. The minds of the Haitians are left to heal themselves.

Haiti still needs all the help we can send. Look deep within yourself. Consider the situation and give all you can. And remember that the recently signed federal act, P.L. 111-1126, allows us to claim a charitable deduction in tax-year 2009 for donations made through March 1, 2010 for the relief of victims in areas affected by the earthquake in Haiti.