LIVING WITH A BURN TRAUMA
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BSTTWTranslationsTips for the Burn Trauma Victim/Survivor: (continued)
- You may experience feelings of sadness, anger, anxiety, and/or fear. Acknowledge these feelings by sharing them with family and friends, a counselor, a support group, or by writing them down in a journal
- Employ the use of resources specific to burn trauma if you require them, such as corrective cosmetics and occupational devices.
- Pursue the professional help of a psychiatrist, psychologist, counselor, social worker or other mental health provider if your feelings of sadness, anxiety and/or anger persist the burn victim/survivor is responsible for his/her own physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual healing, but he/she needs your support in order to do this. Pushing the burn victim/survivor before he or she is ready may produce undesired results. Each victim/survivor's healing and adaptation is highly individual.
- Take shifts in caring for the burn victim/survivor in order to provide much needed respite to one another. Keep a written schedule.
- Help the burn victim/survivor follow the instructions of medical personnel. This may include offering encouragement or agreeing to transport the burn victim/survivor to scheduled appointments. Make certain that the burn victim/survivor is involved in making decisions about his/her treatment.
- Keep the lines of communication open between friends and family and the burn victim/survivor. Tell them how you are feeling and what you are thinking in a sensitive manner.
- " You may experience feelings of sadness, anger, anxiety, guilt and/or fear. Acknowledge these feelings by sharing them with family and friends, a counselor, a support group, or by writing them down in a journal if you wish.
HOPE AND HEALING:
The Burns: Immediately following a burn injury the body begins to heal itself. For portions of the skin that cannot heal on their own, medical teams provide treatments to further facilitate the process. After the body has adequate time to develop mature scar tissue, a burn victim/survivor may undergo cosmetic surgery to either correct functional problems or disfigurement. Waiting for the scars to mature may be frustrating, but during this time you have the opportunity to undergo rehabilitation and work on emotional healing.
Your Changed Self: In grief we learn to identify our losses and define our changed selves. The physical and emotional healing that follows can be a long, involved journey. As you acknowledge your burn injury and give yourself permission to experience the thoughts and feelings that coincide, you begin to assign new meaning to your life. The roles, behaviors, relationships, needs, goals, and expectations you once held will inevitably change. With each new role you assume, each changed relationship you nurture, and each new behavior you adopt, you are reinforcing your changed self.
The love and support of family and friends are crucial in this healing process. As a loved one, it is important to listen to the thoughts and feelings a victim/survivor expresses about the drunk driving crash and about the burn injury. They may need to tell their story over and over again as they work toward reorganizing the world around them.
Regaining physical independence is equally as important and your encouragement will aid in their healing. Life after a drunk driving crash is redirected, whether or not you were involved in the crash. Burn injuries have the power to change appearances, functioning, and identities. As victims/survivors, you have the power to choose how to incorporate those changes into the rest of your lives.
FOR PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH BURNS
The love a parent has for their child is special. Parents want to care for their child, to solace them, and to help them find happiness. Parents feel their child's joy and find it almost intolerable to see a child in pain yet be unable to help. In no other relationship is the protective urge as intense or compelling as in the parent/child relationship. When a child sustains a burn injury, it is not uncommon for parents to feel extremely guilty for what has happened. Feelings of guilt, sadness, anger, and rage are all to be expected. However, if parents harbor inappropriate feeling of guilt, they may inadvertently encourage helplessness and dependence in their child. When a child experiences a traumatic event, he or she is likely to regress or exhibit other undesired behaviors. When parents establish limits while offering love and support, the child burn victim/survivor is empowered to thrive, in spite of periodic setbacks.
Like their parents, children who have burns experience feelings of grief. Some kids show signs of difficulty coping, while others seem to take their burn injuries in stride. Children rely on their parents to model adaptive coping behavior that will carry them through their treatments and subsequent healing. The key seems to be the unconditional acceptance of family friends in the wake of something that is life changing.
