Coping with bushfires

[Sophie_M]

Beyond Blue would like all individuals accessing our online forums in relation to Australia’s bushfire crisis to know that we are here for them.

If you’re feeling worried, we want you to know that it’s okay and you are not alone.

The impacts of this crisis will be ongoing and everyone will have different experiences, thoughts, feelings and emotions.

Even if you haven't been directly affected by these fires you may still feel sad, overwhelmed, stressed and upset.

We hope that you will use this safe, understanding space to talk, share and support one another on a united front.

It can be difficult to know what to say in times like these.

The forum community have been engaging in discussions that you may find helpful: Are you managing to be ok with all these dreadful bushfires?

You may wish to share what you are doing to help cope, or simply to share your experience with others.

Beyond Blue has developed a dedicated resource about bushfires and mental health, including practical advice about dealing with the emotional impact of bushfires, information about the signs and symptoms of emotional distress, tips for supporting children and young people, and links to several useful websites.

Taking care of yourself:

• Limit your exposure to social media – it’s okay to have a break and it’s important you make sure you’re not becoming overwhelmed.
• Speak with our friendly forum community about how you’re feeling
• Set realistic goals that keep you motivated, but don't take on too much (most people in this situation talk of recovery as a journey not a sprint)
• Give yourself time

Seeking help when you are in a bushfire affected area:

• Follow the advice of your local state fire services if you are in a bushfire affected area.
  State fire services:
  NSW RFS
  QLD RFS
  VIC
  SA
  TAS
  NT
  WA
  ACT

• If you require emergency support please contact 000

As a community, let’s help one another through sharing and connecting during this difficult time. This could be by listing links to articles or resources you have found helpful, tips for what is working to help you manage or sharing your thoughts, feelings or experience related to the bushfire crisis.  

Whatever it may be, we're here. 

[Aaronsis]

Hi Kaylyn 1967

Welcome to you to the forum and I hope that you are getting some comfort being here with us and sharing in what does feel like people are pointing fingers, laying blame and thick with politics and red tape. I am getting comfort form though the Australians that are doing everything they can to support, from donating food and supplies to money and services, that our celebrities and people of influence are digging deep too and that we as are nation are essentially holding our hands out to help our neighbors and that is very heart warming.

It is unlike anything we have really seen Kaylyn 1967 and it is just so much to deal with, hugs to you and I hope you can come back to feel supported here too.

Hugs

Sarah

[blondguy]

Hi Everyone

These wildfires have been an issue for me even though I dont live in area that is being effected in southern vic

Sophie_M mentioned "Limit your exposure to social media – it’s okay to have a break and it’s important you make sure you’re not becoming overwhelmed"

This is an important point.... social media can be problematic due to people having conflicting views and can have a detrimental affect on our well being whether we have a mental illness or not during this awful time

Hi Kaylyn1967... Maisie's Right Here and OverwhelmedMarlon.....I understand where you are coming from and yes this is a difficult period to be going through

Great to have you all as part of the Beyond Beyond Blue forum family too!

kindest thoughts always

Paul

[SquireHarbour]

Seeing these bushfires ravage our communities is sickening enough, but the ones that send me off my rocker is just... well the pervasive anger that surrounds the Aussie online discourse. None of the places I visit regularly is peaceful anymore... its just cynicism, rage, anger and rantings on how bad our state our country is as well as rantings about various media figures, politicians and

As a person with wave-like major depressive disorder, seeing the rage and anger our online people present is just depressing in itself and is really making me wonder about the state of the world and our country. Nothing seems right, everything seems wrong. All we can do is rant and hope someone hears us.

And I feel I can't do anything while no one seems to care from the people that we elected....

[Lady_Nova]

I already have MH diagnoses, but I am finding my bush fire experience hard to get over. I am a carer of 3 with disabilities and I had an evacuated house guest who is medically fragile at the moment when we were evac'd ourselves on New Years Eve. I look like I am holding up, but even now I am hiding the butterflies under every inch of my skin, the nightmares, the sleeplessness, the tears, the terror. We had another bad day full of warnings yesterday and the sense of doom is destroying me.

I have to be the strong, capable one, and I am failing. The surrounding community agog with desperation, loss and suffering, I feel trapped within my home, that now feels unsafe as we came so close. I had to drive to a medical appointment, yesterday, through devastation, black and tragic, and I cried the whole way, silent tears just escaping no matter how brave I wanted to be.

Being regional, in a community already lacking adequate support for mental health issues, it feel incredibly selfish to put a hand up and admit to feeling this fragile and needy. I am one of the lucky who lived and still has a home, but I feel desperately unequal to the process of keep on keeping on ...

[Guest_6465]

In 1999 I phoned up to volunteer for my closest brigade after graduating with enviro science, and though being unemployed with all the time in the world I was told by the captain he was not interested in me because I was probably just another enviro graduate looking for free training to help their national parks service application.

In 2003 when I moved to a small coastal town I again rang the local brigade. They were incredulous as that I was not a 'true local' and did not own property to defend why would I would want to join.

I am not glory or thrillseeker. I told them simply after all the catastrophes of 1993-94 (NSW), 2002 (Canberra) 2009 (Black Saturday) I was sick of watching it all happen on TV and as an intelligent able bodied person, simply wanted to help when the country was burning down.

So here I am , feeling angry, frustrated and impotent and wanting to help in a direct way. Very angry and distressed to see most of my refuges, the places I went to to seek solace, a lot of the places that are now annihilated I knew very well. I truly feel for the people who have lost their property and of course the billions of animals holocausted.

[Aaronsis]

Hello ArthurFleck, SquireHarbour and Lady Nova

This is such a terrifying time and the mix of emotions are issues that it is generating is really horrific.

SquireHarbour - I feel for our Prime Minister too, he is under so much pressure and I am sure that he is doing the best he can, that no matter what one does in that role they can never make the right choice that suits everyone and therefor all we do is criticize and hurl abuse and blame, it is so heartbreaking to see.

Lady Nova - I have no idea how hard this must be trying to look after others and manage this yourself, it is wonderful you have reached out here and get some support from this community, we really have not experienced anything like it and I imagine feeling trapped in your home and still having to make appointments and live among this is so scary.

ArthurFleck- that is really hard to digest and especially at a time when they are screaming for help, why they would not want more volunteers coming up and more people to help. I suppose they can only take so many and train so many however, their responses to you have not been very satisfactory seeing the devastation we are in now. The people that are doing things for the animals and firies in their own homes and communities so perhaps there are other ways to assist without actually being at the front of the fires.

It is great to chat to you all and I am hoping that the recent rain has had some impact. The love and support of fellow humans is what is bringing me joy in that we as a country really have come together to help each other out.

Hugs to you all and stay safe.

Sarah xx

[SquireHarbour]

Hello Sarah

Thanks for the words of support.

Its just that... why the most important people we voted and rely on to protect us are failing so badly? Why our PM went to Hawaii when Gospers is on fire? Why he screwed up at Cobargo? Why he has to constantly defend his record when his record shows he clearly gimped himself? The bad interviews, the stupid social media posts, the bastardisation of donations, it just gives off a image that he is that incompetent. Thats not even considering people are blaming anything else other than the big elephant in the room.

Even if I live halfway across the country, seeing this shockingly incompetent leadership from people I should be trusting makes me despair for the state of our country.... what can we do? The only thing we can do is go to the streets and shout the extremes because we are that desperate. Resignation, boot out parliament all that... it seems no one has faith in any of our pillars of society. Its either all filled with malicious conspiracies or fools and there is no inbetween. Donations are dismissed as self serving selfishness, responses are seen as inadequate, everything is bad....

God, I feel like I lost what made this country great.

[Aaronsis]

Hi SquireHarbour

I hear what you are saying and there does seem to be a massive gap in what we were promised s a country to what is being delivered and it is hard to see, when we are in a time of crisis that we feel our leaders are not doing that to the level of what is expected. I am not sure we have seen anything quite like this when essentially our whole Country is alight, I am not sure how anyone person can lead to be honest, to be at so many places and support so many different organisations, communities and give hope and direction, i really dont know how he could do better but I am hearing that people are not happy with what he is doing. I think he really does not have much to go on from past as we really haven't had this sort of level of crisis in our Country. Is that satisfactory, probably not but I do have hope that as a group of people, Australians have bound together to stand up and stand up to help a fellow human. It is really heart warming to see what every day Aussies are doing to support, help and care.

We are going through a really tough time and yes, I am somewhat surprised that we are getting traction off celebrities donating, while it is wonderful I am not sure we need all the hype around it either...I prefer the workd gracious...anyway.

Great to chat to you some more and huge hugs to you xx

Sarah

[Guest_6465]

Replying to all. Scapegoating Morrisson for the fires is disgraceful. Yes, he should have come back from Hawaii straight away, but I guess he thought it just might have been just another bushfire season at the start. It would only have been symbolic anyway. Everyone was where they should have been when the disaster began as far back as July.

State and Federal governments on both sides of the house have failed us since the catastrophic fires in 1994. The government(s) should have been all over this for decades. We should have a whole squadron or more of LATs ready to wipe out such fires as soon as they begin.

I do not believe in Adani opening but banning coal exports but at least 50% of our coal exports are for steel smelting and seeing we are such a clever country we don't make our own steel anymore, so we export coal to places like Chine that do it for us. Yes, every new house should have at least the northern side of the house covered in solar panels, which feed both back into the house and the grid. Stuff like that.

But walking through the baying crowds on Friday afternoon screaming for blood and simple solutions was something like out of the Middle Ages or Frankenstein....and they were led by the usual power hungry troublemaking screamers. None of this is going to help.

We choose to live in a country where 95% of the vegetation is pyromorphic - it loves and wants to catch fire, it evolved to do so.

[Lady_Nova]

I respect your freedom of speech, but my distress doesn't feel like it needs a lecture right now.

Emotionally vacant leadership is harmful to those who need support and leadership in times of crisis. I hope we can all agree on that?