‘Trauma is trauma’: MCCC meets communities with mental health services post-flood
PRESTONSBURG, Ky. (WYMT) - Recent weather has people across the region searching for small pockets of sunshine- literally and metaphorically.
After floodwaters ravaged many Eastern Kentucky communities at the end of July, people were left wondering how to move forward. For most, occupied by thoughts about rebuilding or reclaiming the place they once called home, reeling with the loss of everything they worked hard for. For some, it was the loss of the people who did not make it through the storm. But, for everyone, the mental toll has been palpable.
“What we’re seeing is, people are just really overwhelmed at this point in time,” said Mountain Comprehensive Care Center Mental Health Director Kristi Stiltner. “They’ve lost everything. They don’t know where to even begin, so it’s kind of hard for them to initially to focus on their mental health.”
Stiltner said being available to show people they are not alone, and it is okay to feel however they feel, is an important part of working in the mental health support field. From those who lost loved ones, to those who lost homes, to those who only lost their sense of security, she said the impacts of the waters are seen and felt by everyone.
She said “survivor’s guilt” is also heavily present in times like these, as people compare the magnitude of other people’s losses to diminish the importance of their own.
“Trauma is trauma,” she said. “You didn’t have to lose everything to feel these effects of the flooding and what’s happened.”
So, MCCC case managers hit the streets to help, while teams serve food and more to those in need, putting the crews on the front line. But, now, they are focused on the bottom line: the long-term impacts of the flood.
Some families are already making time to find a plan for their own mental health. McIntosh said he and his family are set to begin therapy sessions in the days to come.
“We got trauma counseling lined up,” he said. “Hopefully that will help us all, you know. The whole family is going to go do that.”
He said he hopes it will provide a sense of normalcy during a time full of nightmares and nothingness.
“Honestly, I was having panic attacks and so I had to just go in a room by myself and calm myself down,” said McIntosh. “I went through the flood and then a fire. I mean, I don’t know what else.”
There are several forms of help available at MCCC, Stiltner said, from school-based therapy for students to outpatient clinics and a 24-hour crisis team.
“Even though the main focus is on the adults and getting their needs met, the children are suffering as well. And we see that children often act out while they’re in school,” she said. “And that’s coming from a place of anxiety or depression, because they’ve lost everything.”
Anyone who needs an ear can contact the crisis team on its 24/7 hotline at (800) 422-1060 or online.
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