Psychological stress another threat in Bali

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Kuta, Bali

Volunteers and security officers who have been working around the clock in the aftermath of the fatal blast in Legian are prone to the Post-Trauma Stress Disorder (PTSD), a noted psychiatrist has warned.

"These people should rest immediately. It does not necessarily mean a full eight-hour sleep, just lying on the back for fifteen minutes and thinking of anything else will be enough," Udayana University professor Luh Ketut Suryani said on Thursday.

Working continuously for several days without proper rest in the environment characterized by charred, mutilated corpses, and collapsed buildings, would eventually drain one's ability to think clearly and coherently, Suryani said.

Generally that inability would trigger PTSD, he said.

"I am particularly concerned about the journalists, volunteers, and security officers, who were present at the scene right after the blast, and then continued working constantly for hours without taking any rest. These people have encountered terrible scenes they probably had never seen before, but then they have o brush aside their fears, repulsion, sadness, anger, or exhaustion in order to carry out their jobs. They are surely very exhausted by now, physically and mentally."

PTSD was characterized by sleep disorders, anxiety, extreme fear, and recurring "flash-backs" of the traumatic event.

"Some of the locals who live near the bomb site have displayed those symptoms. A few of them admitted the tragedy keeps haunting them, that they still could hear the sound of the blast or feel the heat of the raging fire. Generally, they do not dare to come near the devastated area," Suryani said.

At least 190 people were killed and more than 300 injured by the bombs that exploded in Paddy's Pub and outside the Sari Club on Oct. 12. The blast and ensuing fire also destroyed dozens of nearby buildings and cars.

On Thursday, Suryani conducted free therapy sessions for the locals with PTSD symptoms. Combining western psychiatric methods of regressive hypnosis and Balinese traditional meditation techniques she helped at least 13 locals overcome their trauma.

"It was very good. I certainly feel better now. It is as if I had been relieved of a suffocating burden," Dewa Darnesta, who lived just some 50 meters from the leveled Sari Club, said.

Ever since the explosion the 44-year-old man had experienced extreme fear, including a fear of sleeping alone. His family of nine have been sharing one bedroom ever since.

The therapy sessions were part of a free medical services campaign organized by the Udayana University's school of medicine. Some 30 ear, nose, and throat specialists, 30 psychiatrists, and 150 medical students are involved in the work.

The therapy was held inside the humanitarian post, 100 meters from the blast site, and at the Legian clinic.

The workers have established a 24-hour hot-line at 0361-222510 to provide counseling and information services for the locals, who are suffering medical problems as the result of the explosion.