Psychiatrist for Al-Jazeera Net: This is how the Arab public can support Gaza through social media

What are the psychological effects of the Israeli bombing on the residents of the Gaza Strip? And is there anything that the Arab public on social media can do to provide psychological support to the people of Gaza? And how does the killing scenes – on television and on social media – affect the psyche and mental health of children? These and other questions are answered in this interview on Al-Jazeera Net with the consultant psychiatrist, Dr. Walid Sarhan.

• Since May 10, 213 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip, including two doctors, and at least 61 children, in addition to more than 1,400 wounded. What are the psychological effects that this has on the residents of the Strip?

Read also White phosphorous .. Israel denies using it in Gaza, so what is the first aid to deal with it? How is protection from bombing?An antidote to the deadly satin gas soon What is the substance that killed the brother of the North Korean leader?How do nerve gases work?

The fall of the martyrs and the wounded and the constant bombardment has enormous psychological effects on those who are injured and on those who lose loved ones, as well as on those who watch the events and watch them carefully. It is known that there is a psychological trauma disorder for those who live in an area of ​​armed conflict, and in such a case it is the bombing and attack on unarmed civilians, not an army for another.

This requires direct intervention to stop the bombing and aggression, and it also requires the bodies that send medical aid to have specialists in psychiatry, psychology, counseling, and other necessary specializations necessary to reduce the psychological effects as much as possible.

• How do the killing scenes affect the psyche of those who watch them, whether they are adults or children?

Watching the killing on the ground is experienced by our people in Gaza and in all of Palestine, and there is no doubt that it is very influential, as the loss of a father, brother, mother, sister and son is an effective loss in all cases, and when it is murder, crime and aggression, its impact is greater, especially those who lose a number of Members of their family or all of their families, and the immediate effects are known, such as trauma, depression, and various psychological conditions, and they need psychological care, immediate psychological aid, and subsequent psychological care that must be prepared for.

All people are affected by different ages, especially children who have never seen anything like this before, who have not lived such experiences, or who lose a member of their family or are injured; Therefore, there is no doubt that there are many who develop cases of psychological, emotional, and behavioral disorder.

• What about the psychological state of the families of the martyrs who witnessed the death of their sons and their family members in front of them?

God was in the help of this group of people, as they often did not lose one individual but more, and they saw this loss as the buildings collapsed under the influence of rockets and cannons and they watched them trying to flee, and they watched them screaming and calling for their rescue and they were unable to do anything, which leads to shock Intense mourning and grief for the dead who exceeded normal grief in normal circumstances, and also remain entangled in the circumstances experienced by the individual who lost one of his family members, and the bombing and beating are still continuing and expecting him to lose others or lose his life, in certain cases we saw a child commit suicide After losing the last member of his family.

This is a modal window.

We are having an unexpected problem, check and try again shortly

Error code: MEDIA_ERR_UNKNOWN Session ID: 2021-05-18: 32aaaa5226823ff6bc7e993e Trigger object ID: vjs_video_1621

• How do the killing scenes – on television and on social media – affect the psyche and mental health of children?

As for children – outside Gaza – the scenes of murder affect their psyche, as do adults, especially the long hours of viewing these pictures on television or viewing them on the ground, and they contain horrific and frightening images that may take a long time to be erased from a person’s memory. Children should, as much as possible, avoid witnessing cases of killing, violence, shooting and rockets, in addition to keeping them away from watching news bulletins and social media, which sometimes exaggerate the portrayal of victims, killings, wounds and maiming.

• How can psychological support be provided to the survivors of the Israeli bombing and the wounded on the Shifa family?

There must be ready-made teams in place, but unfortunately in our communication with colleagues in Gaza, the situation is difficult even for psychiatric teams, because they also lost members of their families and were exposed to all forms of this violence and this constant bombardment, and therefore there is a need for support from outside within the capabilities. The simple available, especially since electricity, the Internet and television may not be available most of the time and for all people, and I am calling on all peoples and countries to provide some support through the radio stations that can be captured by simple radio or on the car radio. As for patients on the Shifa family, there must be doctors. They take care of them; Among the medical teams, there are doctors and psychologists who perform various medical and surgical treatments.

• Do you expect an increase in certain psychological disorders in the coming period in Gaza, such as the psychological distress resulting from the bombing and the fall of martyrs and the wounded?

Certainly, it is known that PTSD, or PTSD, is one of the disorders that increases dramatically within a month for those who are exposed to trauma, in addition to other psychological disorders such as anxiety, depression and

This is a modal window.

We are having an unexpected problem, check and try again shortly

Error code: MEDIA_ERR_UNKNOWN Session ID: 2021-05-18: 91c88d59d244acee9b90a8 Trigger object ID: vjs_video_2884

• In your view, is there anything the Arab public on social media can do to provide psychological support to the people of Gaza?

I believe that the Arab public should communicate with those they know from among the residents of Gaza and Palestine with all means of telephone communication or social media applications, and be in constant contact with them, and the Arab citizen can, through these applications, provide emotional assistance, and also for professionals, specialists and psychologists to send messages Supportive of the Palestinian people in all the Palestinian territories and in Gaza in particular.

In the end, I would like to appeal to the various media outlets to work to provide communication through radio stations in and around the Gaza Strip in the southern West Bank, as instructions and instructions reach all the people of the Strip through these stations, and there are thousands of Arab specialists ready to provide all forms of support through these The important medium.