Midwesterners from Main Street to rural locations continue to face recovery from flooding. Catastrophes often bring high stress, short tempers and a sense of hopelessness. How do you overcome such overwhelming obstacles? Where do you even start?
Look to communication and connection before anything else.
“Making big problems smaller requires asking for help and planning with people you trust,” said David Ermer, MD, Clinical Vice President of Avera Behavioral Health in Sioux Falls. “Make recovery as manageable as possible.”
Dealing with Cleanup and Emotions at Once
While floodwaters have receded, the hard work of cleanup and restoration continues. It can often bring a “double whammy” of emotional impacts, Ermer said. He recommended these ideas:
- It might sound selfish, but the first thing to consider is yourself; you can’t help anyone else if you’re overwhelmed.
- Communicate and collaborate with family, neighbors, coworkers with a focus on personal property losses
- If you own a small business, be ready to face new worries, emotions or a sense of defeat.
“Focus on priorities, yet remember your stress is normal,” Ermer said. “Business owners can combat stress by remembering how they got here.”
Remember: Your resourcefulness, hard work and grit that led to your success – in business or with your home -- is still yours to use to the face of challenges like tearing out drywall or replacing ruined machinery.
“The small silver lining of flooding is the widespread nature of the damage; it’s something that can bring communities together,” Ermer added. “Be deliberate in your decisions. Get advice from loved ones or people you trust.” Avoid decision-making when emotional and get help.
Learn to Accept Help as You Help Others
Ermer said local, state and federal government relief teams are professionals. They’re prepared to help you. But sometimes pride is an obstacle.
“Most people don’t like to ask for help, yet accepting it is a sign of strength,” he said. Other suggestions he offered include:
- When you hold steady in your recovery work and plan carefully, discouraging thoughts are less apt to creep in.
- Self-care sounds out of place when you have dumpsters to rent, ruined carpets to haul and soiled photo albums to salvage. But self-care is fundamental.
- Try to establish some sort of routine; it can especially help families with kids. A schedule fights chaos, worry and stress.
Ermer also said people recovering can:
- Make “one day at a time” to-do lists.
- Set priorities by the hour or half-day.
- When your thoughts remain negative, seek help from a behavioral health professional.
- Take breaks from the news and social media.
Balancing Help for You and For Others
If you want to help others, take a simple step: just show up. “We text and call a lot in today’s society, but just arriving at someone’s house and chipping in is critical,” Ermer said. “Employers can do this with their workers.”
Other strategies that can overcome the moment of difficulty are things like:
- Remembering you’ve overcome many things; stay centered and remind yourself that you can come back.
- Keep people informed on your progress, worries and do try to and talk to people more.
- Reach out to family and friends.
“Retreating into a withdrawn state is never helpful,” he added.
Even when you look at a flood-destroyed stand of corn, a beloved living room that’s destroyed or shops and bedrooms damaged by stagnant water, you can still find gratitude.
“You’re alive, your family and friends are, too, and your community has been through the same thing as you,” he said. “When we’re grateful, we can stop and realize that ‘We can do this’ but it will take time, grace and remembering that we need to accept help as well as offer it to others.”
Learn more about Avera’s behavioral health services.
