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Subscribe to RSSStudents at Chardon High School outside of Cleveland are reeling after a school shooting that left three students dead and two others injured.
“It’s just a nightmare I’m waiting to wake up from,” said Mike Wargo, a senior who heard the gunshots shortly after leaving his friends in the school’s cafeteria.
“I can’t even imagine what the parents feel right now,” Wargo told TODAY's Savannah Guthrie through tears. ‘”I wish I was there. I’d rather take bullet for one of those five.”
Neither Wargo, nor most of the high school’s students were physically hurt in the attack. But they may suffer psychological scars of guilt and grief. Mental health experts say the echoes of such a trauma can last for months -- or if untreated -- for years.
Grief counselors are on hand to talk to students, teachers and parents affected by the Chardon, Ohio school shooting.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental health condition spurred by a terrifying event. The symptoms interfere with daily life and can include flashbacks, anxiety, nightmares, difficulty sleeping or concentrating, and even physical aches and pains.
“We don’t want kids to have to deal with these symptoms for the rest of their lives,” said Dr. Melissa Brymer, director of terrorism and disaster programs with the National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. “They need to get the message that … there are treatments.” Brymer has studied incidents of post-traumatic stress disorder after school shootings in Southern California in 2001 and at Virginia Tech in 2007.
Brymer notes that a certain amount of anxiety and stress following such an event is normal and expected. Students may not sleep well. And rumors flying about what happened exacerbate the situation.
Many students wrestle with guilt about whether they could have stopped the shooting or done more to save a friend or peer. In her research of the Santee, Calif., shooting that left two students dead and 13 wounded, Brymer discovered that about 40 students had information about possible threats before the shooting occured. Those people needed extra support, she said.
But not every student will react the same.
“Not everyone who has been through a school shooting will get PTSD,” Brymer says. “It’s the kids who were directly exposed who are more at risk.”
That could include students who were in the cafeteria at the time of the shooting, those who had a friend who was killed or injured, or those who provided first aid to someone who was hurt.
In her research following a 2001 shooting at Santana High School in Santee, Calif., Brymer found that about 12 percent of the 1,160 students screened had some symptoms of PTSD nine months later.
And nearly a quarter of the students who were directly exposed to the violence suffered from some degree of PTSD nine months later, according to the study.
Whether and how quickly a student bounces back from the trauma of a school shooting depends on factors including the person’s social support system and individual ability to cope with stress, Brymer said. Kids with a history of mental illness or other traumas may struggle more. Girls and younger teens tend to be at higher risk for developing PTSD after trauma.
Brymer’s research highlights the importance of schools screening students for PTSD following a shooting, and the value of continuing to provide services even months after the event. She urges students, parents and staff to monitor their friends and peers for behavior changes or signs of ongoing stress.
“It’s important to recognize those who are truly struggling,” she said. “We know that there are effective treatments that help these students. There are mental health professional trained in trauma and grief and we want to connect them.”
In Chardon, all local schools are closed and the school district is providing free grief counseling. School District Superintendent Joe Bergant told a news conference that the community needed to spend time "reflecting on family." He added, "I hope every parent, if you haven't hugged or kissed your kids in the last couple days, you take that time."
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that a number of students had information about threats prior to the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting; research in fact revealed that about 40 students had information about threats leading up to the 2001 Santee, Calif., school shooting.
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I hug and kiss my son all the time... it doesn't take a school shooting for me to do that.
What kills me is that there are SO MANY kids feeling hopeless. And when a kid feel hopeless and there is a gun lying around... well... what the hell do people expect?
First spend sometime with your kids. Listen to them. Prompt conversation. ask questions. get involved with them. Then put into place some serious gun control.
I was at Kent State when the Guard shot students in 1970. It will take YEARS and a lot of understanding for the students who have had to face this horrible incident. To the parents - take your children for counseling - for as long as it takes. They will need to vent; cry; get angry; and try to figure out why their friends had to die. They will feel hurt, guilty and helpless. And those feelings come and go. Don't ever think - "well it has been long enough. They'll be over it." Each person heals at their own pace and even small things can bring feelings back. Love them, support them, be there for them. It's all you can do.
You are a loving mother....it seems. Do you support the NRA? If you do, you are not the loving mother you seem to be.
EXPECT........Really I blame parents as much as the low life scum that pull the trigger in these school shootings. It is about RIGHT AND WRONG once again it is always someone elses fault. NOBODY I mean NOBODY can take responsibilty for there own actions and the parents are responsible for what that kid did and all the other kids that have done this. GOD im mean really if this kid went out and killed these kids with his car what would have happened, the parents of the dead would go after the family and the insurance company why because the PARENTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR EVERYTHING THEIR KIDS DO TILL THEY TURN 18. Hang the kid the mother and the father for creating something they should have never created.............................A COWARD who should have never been allowed to breathe the same air we breathe.
EDM...just to be fair, you must apply the same logic to the kids that bullied the shooter.
And you are right, parents do not teach right from wrong. I run in to some trouble with young kids on occasion at a city park tennis courts. They want to tear up the courts using their skateboards and bikes on them. You should see the look on their faces when I tell them, "Just be a man a do the right thing." It's like magic words they've never heard before.
I taught my kids to never side with a bully. Always take the side of the kid being bullied and let them know they have an ally. And if you can, befriend the bully and try to lead them in the right direction.
That is all there is to being a man or a woman. Doing the right thing.
You better believe it does! Now mom and dad - don't add to it by splitting up over stupid stuff. There's my two cents but the next school shooter could be your very own child.
You have them you are no longer top priority!
Take it from me !!
P.T.S.D. Lasts for your life time . I know what it has done to me over these many years . My heart goes out to those kids and all families caught up in that tragic event . None will ever be the same again. I'm sorry to say. It is like a hang over you can't cure. Night Mayer's, flash backs, night sweats, depression problems and anxiety problems. All last your entire life.
bob
Tragically, bob, you are totally correct. I was the target of a murder plot by poison as well as physical assaults when I was director of a group home for juvies. It was part of a corporation whose owners were, in fact, criminals and engaged in major cover-ups to keep from getting caught. Unfortunately, I live in the Appalachia of the north and needed the job.
I have, over the years, developed many coping skills which enable me to function. . . .until a triggering event. I keep anxiety meds in the bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom. I never go anywhere without them. Still, there are places and situations I must avoid to keep from paralyzing panic.
I sincerely hope all the kids in that school and surrounding ones get help immediately. Any delay drives the reaction and the PTSD deeper. Whatever it takes, they must be assured over and over of their safety.
PTSD, is horrible. Even responders can get it.
I really don't know why, so called experts, promote what is equivalent to Fairy Tale endings to PTSD. If you really have PTSD, you have it for life. Your earning power over a life time will be half or less, your ability to have healthy relationships is reduced to near zero. You spend most of your life in a "cemetery fog."
Students should be warned of all consequences, not deluded: it just increases anxiety and survivor guilt.
My father has PTSD. Had it since his experiences in WWII. He is 90 years old.
Most of the ww2 Vets, with PTSD, went to the American Legion Hall, and drank away the pain. When I was a boy, a ww2 vet cut my hair, when I got back from 'Nam, he told me his story. Both his units got wiped out, and he was the sole survivor, twice. He never got over it, drank a lot. He had a recurring nightmare where he was under fire and jumped into a foxhole for cover. To his horror, it was already occupied by a very young German Boy/Man. He said, both were terrified and struggled. He killed the German youngster. When it was over, he lay there with the dead boy. He said he was so young and innocent looking, he then threw up over and over. He later looked in the boy's wallet and saw pictures of his girlfriend and family then relived the macabre duel , then he would awake sweating and covered in urine.
I have PTSD from being at Virginia Tech and like the above, I don't think it's something I will ever 'get over' or 'recover' from. I'm still in my 20s, but like the people above, I think it will be something that lasts the rest of my life. It will never be an event I can just think about without flashbacks or get emotional about or go a day without thinking about it. Make sure these kids get the help they need because this will follow them for the rest of their lives. They still have college to get through and when you've had something like that happen in a school setting already, being put back in a school setting for another 4+ years will not be an easy thing to accomplish.
It is the most terrible thing that I could ever imagine. My prayers are with the family of the three children who perished in this horrible deed, commited by a juvenile. Many lives will be impacted by this for years to come. I experienced something tragic in my family some years ago, involving one of my children. I can tell you that it will take a lifetime for some of us to recover from the tragedy that impacted our lives.
The only thing worse than dying as a child is being the parent of that child.
A good resource for children who have lost a parent or a sibling is Comfort Zone Camp! www.comfortzonecamp.org. Attendance at camp is Free for all kids.
Headline reads: "School shootings and PTSD: Trauma can last for months or years"
Wow, Kelly Kearsley! What an absolutely "brilliant headline"... like duh, Gee, Kelly... do ya think so?
How much research and study did you have to do to come up with that headline? According to her headline, she seems to be implying that some people "may not realize" that traumatic life experiences normally last for years... but is this "somehow supposed to be new information?"
If so.. wow! I mean, how stupid does Kelly think these readers are?
Here are some tips for more of your brilliant headlines... like how about,
"People who swallow poison can die" or "People who die rarely come back to life"
Maybe, "People who cannot swim may drown when swimming alone"
Well, thanks to the incredible journalistic skills of Kelly, NOW people realize the dangers of PTSD!
Thank you Kelly!
These readers owe YOU a big debt of gratitude?
Actually NOT!
The story was an absurd waste of space.
Speedy - no but your post was a complete waste of space. Sometimes people need to be reminded that these tragedies repercussions last a lifetime. My guess is you'd be one of the first to tell someone to "just get over it - it's been long enough." If this was such a waste why did you read then post. What a waste.
The trauma can last for months or years...just like the legal posturing that it will take to get TJ Lane executed. If he goes for the insanity plea he may well outlive the two remaining survivors of his attack.
didnt know what ptsd was. came back from nam, knew i wasn't the same. back then there was no such thing as ptsd. you did your tour came home and went to work. i still don't like large crowds, i look for exits in unfamiliar places, and sit with my back to the wall in eating establishments. i'm 63 and still have issues. it is what it is. semper fi
George...from the son of a 90 year old WWII Marine veteran who still has PTSD, and a man who lost a cousin in Nam, thank you Sir for your service and sacrifices. Wishing you the best in your continued recovery.
I'm sure the republicans will not want to pay for all this PTSD nonsense.
Got news for you. It'll last into your next incarnation.
PTSD is a serious condition! Not everyone develops it but it can even cause other issues like OCD and or phobias such as agoraphobia! Best to jump on it now to deal with theng rather than wait til someone has a serious illness! There is also a mistake in this PTSD can last a life time for some people, there are people who never truely recover depending on the severity!
Treat it like they treat veterans; a pre-existing condition.
In our culture we are not taught responsibility. We do not know how to take information that we might hear about things that can do damage to ourselves or property and do the right thing.. The ramifications of not doing the right thing, is a forever sentence.. We as a species have issues with things outside the normal. Good example, all you have to do is watch a trial where the acts of a so called normal next door neighbor or friend and it just could knock your socks off.. Most of us would say that they just could not believe that person could do something that bad, for there are lots of people that have rose colored glasses on all the time... And that is how they react to the world being as bad as it is sometimes.. Human nature is interesting. Why is it always that when a person is on drugs, has issues, drunk there are many things that affect the mind, why do we always do bad things? Why is the evil part of the brain just waiting to put its foot out there and not let its self find a better way of dealing with the world as it is. Is it because we are predisposed to violence and that maybe we need to look at better ways of getting the bad part of our thoughts right. It is like the good and bad of our brain is having a duel and the bad part is winning out.. How do we deal with that it is there, its alive and doing quite well, and change our course of life...Every time I hear about a murder or something bad, why is it that the really great part just does not show up? And I am not talking about everyone who helps and the aftermath, just that why did it have to happen in the first place. We are are worst enemies. But I realize there is such greatness out there, this is just a thought on what I see out there. I have gone through life with the idea that you have to know how bad it is out there to realize what is really good and work with our seemly bad attributes. I have 3 kids also. This is just what every parent dreads. I do hope that everyone gets what they need to feel secure..I think that if we try to put ourselves in the other persons shoes every once in awhile we might be better off too...
Yes! More disability checks for our young people to look forward to instead of handling society as it should.
America!
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Do what is right and honorable?
Hell no - we give it a diagnosis and throw a check at it until they bully someone again, and ask for more money!
Most know that situations like this could traumatize an adult let alone a child. However, the bigger picture is most times overlooked when the victim becomes the suspect and the bullies become the victims. The focus should be on the trauma that is cause by bullying and how to federally deal with it before another child commits suicide or becomes a murderer and more children die or become victims. It is usually the same case in school shootings, the suspect was bullied. It is just as important to understand the traumatic effects of being bullied as it is to understand the traumatic effects of the outcomes.
Are you saying that anyone that uses a gun, police, military are incapable of being a loving parent? The NRA supports gun safety. What is bad about an organization that stresses responsible use and ownership of firearms? I guess Obama being Commander In Chief and having to send the military to do their job (using firearms) means that he isn't a good Father?