• What is Emotional
  First Aid (EFA)?
• The Horrible Hours
• Common Reactions to
  Traumatic Events
• The 5 Emotional
  First Aid (EFA) Skills
  • Reach Out
  • Protect
  • Reassure
  • Organize
  • Reinforce
• EFA: The Finer Points
  • Acknowledge
  • Normalize
  • Expand the Survivors Story
  • Redirect
  • The Fine Art of
    Hanging Around
  • Caring Demeanor
  • Recognize Sources
    of Strength
• What to Say/Not to Say
  to Survivors of Tragedy
• Death Notification
• EFA: Guiding Principles
• Review of Major EFA Concepts
• EFA is Powerful
• Get Yourself Out of the Way
• Helping Teens & Children
• Understanding the Emergency System
• Helper: Heal Yourself
• Follow Up with Survivors
• Online Resources
• Special Circumstances
  • Dealing with Traumatic Loss
  • Domestic Violence
  • Fire Loss
  • Suicide
  • Death in the Workplace
• Print PDFs

It is important to realize as a helper that everyone reacts differently to tragic events. An individual’s reaction will be affected by a number of factors including the survivor’s personal life; the survivor’s physical and mental health; the suddenness of the tragic event; and the timing of the tragic event.

However, there are reactions to tragic events which are common and which you are likely to see when helping a survivor. These reactions include...

• Shock and disbelief
• Guilt
• Anger/blaming
• Numbness
• Denial of the enormity of the event
• Confusion
• Paralysis
• Inability to make decisions
• Helplessness
• Fear
• Urgent need for information

Implications for Helpers

If you hear the survivor saying something like "what is the matter with me?", you can say "what you are experiencing is very normal under these circumstances".

If you hear one survivor judging how another survivor is reacting, you can say "everyone grieves differently".