Bomb victim still affected by trauma

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The Sept. 9 blast outside the Australian Embassy in Kuningan, South Jakarta, had not only taken the lower jaw of Mulyono, but it had left horrible, vivid memories that has made him a different man.

"Whenever he reads stories in newspapers or watches news on television about the Kuningan bombing, he will begin to tremble and break out in a cold sweat, and I can hear his heart beating so fast," Mulyono's father, Sutrisman, told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

An article recently published in a newspaper that described the 35-year-old's condition had badly disturbed him, he added.

Sutrisman said it was only after a while that Mulyono, the sixth of his eight children, was able to calm down.

The family then decided to insulate the small rented house in a densely populated alley in Cempaka Putih, Central Jakarta, where Mulyono and his wife Dewi live, from any news as well as interviews.

"But he loves to read newspapers to kill the time ... His friends from work and school often come to update him, which is good because I can see from his face that he is very happy and relieved to have his friends and relatives visiting," said the father, who lives in a separate house nearby.

Mulyono, a staff member of Bank Danamon, was passing by the embassy when the bomb exploded. He was admitted to Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM) and was then sent to Gleneagles Hospital in Singapore to get his jaw reconstructed at the Australian government's expense.

Mulyono will return to Singapore on Nov. 7 for a final checkup.

"He hasn't been able to talk until now ... maybe in three weeks. He has to got to RSCM every three days to monitor improvements after the surgery," said Sutrisman.

Sutrisman said that since his son was immediately sent to Singapore, no psychologists or counselors had come to help Mulyono through the trauma. "He's getting better because of all the support he has received from family members and relatives," he said.

Other survivors are being assisted by Yayasan Pulih, a foundation that focuses on helping bomb victims deal with post- traumatic stress.

Indah Sulistyorini from the foundation acknowledged that they were late in getting information on Mulyono, hence the foundation was only able to send two counselors to his house on Tuesday.

"It is normal for a victim to be still struggling to let go of a traumatic experience for up until six to seven weeks after the incident. But if Mulyono is still traumatized after seven weeks, then he should see a psychologist. However, each individual has their own way of getting over a bad experience," Indah told the Post.

If the victim could not get over the trauma after the period, many symptoms -- including nightmares, waking up suddenly from sleep, reexperiencing the incident, as well as fear of meeting others -- would haunt them, she added.