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'This is like a war zone': Recurring terror in D.C.Successive trauma tests residents' coping skills
By Christy Oglesby (CNN)
(CNN) -- First, there was the crushing blow of hijackers ramming a plane into the Pentagon. Then there was the uppercut of anthrax attacks. That bio-terror shut down legislative buildings and post offices and killed two Washington D.C.-area residents. Now a sniper is on the prowl. Six people are dead. Two more are injured. Mental health professionals say such recurring terror can leave people in an embattled community such as the Washington environs on the psychological ropes. "I feel this is like a war zone we're living in," one Maryland resident told CNN. "President Bush is talking about fighting Iraq, and we have a war in this country he needs to deal with." A barrage of stressful events sometimes weakens a person's ability to cope, said Dr. Charles Raison, an assistant professor in mind-body programs in the psychology and behavioral sciences department at the Emory University School of Medicine. People who may have successfully staved off anxiety after one stressful occurrence, may not be able to withstand repeated terror-inducing situations, he said. "There is a lot of evidence that people who are exposed to one stress after another are more likely to develop stress-related disorders," said Raison, a psychiatrist. A common manifestation, he said, would be a sense of fearful dread or horror.
Shauna Collier, a library archivist who lives in Maryland and works in Washington, said she and her friends are living with fear. "D.C. has a high crime rate anyway, but these shootings are totally unprovoked and random with no logic as to who is shot, why, or where the next one may occur," Collier said. "Yesterday's shooting of the kid added even more tension and fear, because it made you realize how heartless and cruel this person truly must be. ... I've been putting off running some errands because I don't want to be out too much by myself." The random nature of the shootings can mitigate and exacerbate anxiety the Washington-area residents feel, said Dr. Charles Figley, a psychologist at the Traumatology Institute at Florida State University. Randomness is "good news and bad news," he said. "It's good that you are not the target group. The bad news is that it could happen to anybody."
That uncertainty might create a startle response in some people, putting them on edge, Figley said, or generate nightmares and flashbacks where they relive other frightening moments in their lives. People might have problems going to sleep, staying asleep or concentrating, he said. Old and young people may feel particularly vulnerable, fearing that something may happen to their caregivers, Figley said. The Montgomery County public school district that has jurisdiction over the school where a sniper shot a 13-year-old student Monday has issued a tip sheet for parents and school administrators.(Parent tip sheet) Attendance was a near-normal levels as schools remained on code blue, which halts outdoor activities. But, "We are naturally concerned about the mental health as well as the physical safety," of students, said Jerry Weast, the Montgomery County schools superintendent. The administration crafted age-appropriate suggestions about beginning conversations with students and answering their questions. Weast said school principals also received information on the signs of stress in school employees and how to handle it. Reactions to violent and stressful situations vary greatly, the doctors said, and some people will not develop any symptoms of stress disorders. Some people rely on their faith or talking to themselves or friends as tragedy visits and revisits their communities, Figley said. "For those people who are coping well, this is a positive thing. They develop a resilience. It's one more reason to believe that they will be OK," Figley said. "But for other people, it's a black cloud syndrome. No matter where you go and what you do, you are not safe."
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"Yesterday's shooting of the kid added even more tension and fear, because it made you realize how heartless and cruel this person truly must be." 
