Prepare Your Mind For The Coming Crisis – Part 10: How To Explain Disasters And Crises To Children – (1)

photo source: thistimeimeanit.com

Today we’ll talk about a very difficult topic: how to explain disasters and crises to children (whether you’re a parent or a grandparent), to minimize post-traumatic stress and help them deal with the new situation.

Kids are especially sensitive to the things going on around them, because they cannot explain phenomenons by themselves. They don’t have the knowledge or the emotional maturity to understand why things are suddenly different from the way they used to be.

That’s why we have to constantly observe them, notice changes in their behaviour or mood, answer their questions or, if they’re abnormally quiet, ask them questions to uncover their real feelings.

First thing you need to know is how children normally react to a disaster or crisis according to their age.

On the FEMA site (home.fema.gov) I discover some interesting stuff about on this subject and I’d like to share it with you:

“Birth through 2 years. When children are pre-verbal and experience a trauma, they do not have the words to describe the event or their feelings. However, they can retain memories of particular sights, sounds, or smells. Infants may react to trauma by being irritable, crying more than usual, or wanting to be held and cuddled.

The biggest influence on children of this age is how their parents cope. As children get older, their play may involve acting out elements of the traumatic event that occurred several years in the past and was seemingly forgotten.

Preschool – 3 through 6 years. Preschool children often feel helpless and powerless in the face of an overwhelming event. Because of their age and small size, they lack the ability to protect themselves or others. As a result, they feel intense fear and insecurity about being separated from caregivers.

Preschoolers cannot grasp the concept of permanent loss. They can see consequences as being reversible or permanent. In the weeks following a traumatic event, preschoolers’ play activities may reenact the incident or the disaster over and over again.

School age – 7 through 10 years. The school-age child has the ability to understand the permanence of loss. Some children become intensely preoccupied with the details of a traumatic event and want to talk about it continually. This preoccupation can interfere with the child’s concentration at school and academic performance may decline.

At school, children may hear inaccurate information from peers. They may display a wide range of reactions—sadness, generalized fear, or specific fears of the disaster happening again, guilt over action or inaction during the disaster, anger that the event was not prevented, or fantasies of playing rescuer.

Pre-adolescence to adolescence – 11 through 18 years. As children grow older, they develop a more sophisticated understanding of the disaster event. Their responses are more similar to adults. Teenagers may become involved in dangerous, risk-taking behaviors, such as reckless driving, or alcohol or drug use. Others can become fearful of leaving home and avoid previous levels of activities.

Much of adolescence is focused on moving out into the world. After a trauma, the view of the world can seem more dangerous and unsafe. A teenager may feel overwhelmed by intense emotions and yet feel unable to discuss them with others.”

Basically, you need to adapt your explanations to your children’s or grandchildren’s age. And when you decide to talk to them, follow these basic rules:

• Choose a time when they’re not busy or distracted by something else. Also, you need to have enough time to answer all their questions. And that could take hours.

• Tell them it’s going to be a serious talk, so they understand this is not a joke and they should take it seriously.

• Be patient. Don’t rush into a speech, leaving them no room to ask questions.

• Pay attention to their reaction (if they get scared, upset, confused, etc.). Adapt your words to their feelings.

• Ask them questions like “How are you feeling?”, “Is it clear so far?”, “Is there something you’d like to ask?”, “What do you think will happen” and lots of “Why?”s.

These are ground rules, but there are a lot more things you need to take into consideration when it comes to discussing such a difficult matter with your children or grandchildren. We’ll cover those next time, because there’s a lot to talk about. Until then, stay safe, as always.

For more articles on survival topics, check out: www.myfamilysurvivalplan.com.

Earthquake Safety Tips: A Comprehensive Resource

Earthquake Safety Tips: A Comprehensive Resource. Photo – Adobe Stock (under license)

Earthquakes account for half of the total events for the worlds top 10 most dangerous natural disasters. Prepare your self, your home, and your family with these earthquake safety tips.

Before the Quake: How to Prepare

Construct or buy a solid home, especially in an earthquake-prone area.

Create an emergency plan in case of an earthquake, and ensure your family understands it.

• Stash supplies to use in an emergency

1. Water and non-perishable food that can last for at least 3 days
2. A first-aid kit
3. Any necessary medication
4. Dust masks and goggles
5. An operating battery-run radio
6. Flashlights
7. A whistle
8. Tools that can help you turn off gas, electric, and water and heat utilities.

• Practice earthquake drills.

Know where and how to turn off your utilities.

Make your home a sturdier place.

• Bolt bookcases, latch cabinets or cupboards, nail down shifting furniture, and anchor heavy appliances.

• Construct extra support for your windows and doors.

• Store heavier objects close to or on the ground.

• Support the overall framework of your house.

• Store flammable liquids away from flame-inducing objects (stoves, furnaces).

• Fasten mirrors and heavy paintings (or whatever you have tacked up or supported on the walls) away from beds, couches, or wherever people are typically situated.

• Do it yourself or enlist the help of a professional: check for vulnerable foundations, cracked pipes, faulty or cracked walls, inadequate masonry, etc.

Imagine where you’d go.

• Envision “safe spots” in every room. If an earthquake strikes, could you dart under that table, or that desk, or that doorway?

Never block exits.

Largest ever Earthquake scored a magnitude of 9.2
In the United States, the largest recorded earthquake took place on Prince William Sound, Alaska on March 28, 1964 with a magnitude of 9.2.

Tsunamis have caused Half a Billion Dollars in Property Damage
Since 1646, six tsunamis have killed more than 350 people and damaged a half billion dollars of property in Hawaii, Alaska and the West Coast.

Is It Possible to Predict an Earthquake?

Earthquakes are hard to predict. Even the sharpest of experts can’t reliably predict major earthquakes. They can, however, calculate probabilities based on past patterns and science.

• Common precursors:

1. Increased water levels
2. Unusual behavior by animals
3. Unusual weather patterns, especially concerning temperature.
4. Static electricity fluctuations

• When the quake strikes:

1. A roaring noise
2. The obvious shaking

• Ensure your home is as stable and secure as possible.

• Stabilize or isolate the heavy or hazardous materials in your home or workspace.

• Plan for an earthquake emergency with kits and drills.

• When an earthquake strikes: drop, seek cover, and hold on.

• After an earthquake, assess your situation and don’t make sudden moves.

• If you become trapped by an earthquake, stay where you are and try to alert others so that they can reach you instead.

Staying Safe When the Earth Starts Dancing

Know where to go.

• If you’re in a car, slow down and pull over at a clear place, far from buildings, trees, and power cords.

• If you’re outdoors, drop to the ground at a similarly clear place.

• If you’re in bed, and relatively safe from flying or falling objects, stay put and guard your head and body with your pillow and blankets.

• In a high-rise building, stay away from windows.

1. Move far from bridges and elevated highways, as these may give way.

• Never use the elevator.

Know how to ride it out.

• “Drop, cover, and hold on tight.”

• Take cover beneath something sturdy that will protect you from flying, shattering objects.

1. Crouch beneath a heavy table or desk. If it moves and you can’t keep it in place, go with it.

2. Stay away from bookcases, wobbling furniture, glass, and exterior walls and doors.

• If possible, take cover within a doorframe, which is more stable and provides more support than any other place in the house.If there’s nothing to protect you, crouch against an interior wall and cover your head with your arms.

1. Only use a doorway which you know is load-bearing and strongly supported.

Know when not to run.

• Don’t be alarmed; fire alarms and water sprinklers will probably go off during an earthquake.

• Don’t exit a building during an earthquake.

1. You’re most vulnerable right outside of a building—you could easily be hit by debris that is plummeting from collapsing exterior walls.

2. Know that most injuries occur when people attempt to run inside a building.

Safety Precautions After the Quake

If you’re trapped, follow these earthquake safety tips:

• Never light a match

• Don’t move. At best, you’ll kick up dust (bad for your limited air supply); at worst, you might cause a further collapse.

• Cover your nose and mouth lightly with cloth.

• Alert others of your location:

1. Tap on a pipe or wall
2. Use a whistle
3. Shout—as a last resort. It’s dangerous because you’ll inhale too much dust.

Assess the situation;make sure it’s safe to move before you move. If possible, exit the building as soon as possible.

Check for injuries (personal and those of the people around you).

Keep clear of damaged areas.

If you’re home, tread carefully:inspect utilities, open cabinets carefully, clean up spills, and wear protective clothes so you won’t hurt yourself amongst the debris.

If there’s a power outage,unplug appliances.

If you smell or have any indication of a gas leak,evacuate immediately; open doors and windows on your way out.

If water lines or sewage lines seem to be damaged,call a plumber before using the water and toilet utilities.

• Meanwhile, plug the bathroom and sink drains

Look for fire, a typical hazard after an earthquake.

Turn off the electricity if you discern frayed wires, sparks, or the scent of overheated insulation.

Tune in to your radio or TV for information: another earthquake might be forecasted, or resources and guidelines may be broadcasted.

Be prepared for aftershocks.

Be alert for tsunami warnings if you’re near a coastline.

Delivered by www.complianceandsafety.com

The Good Old Days Are Over

Do you remember “the good old days”? It’s a simple question, but a question that induces different images to different people. I have found myself spending a lot of time lately thinking of the way things used to be and hoping that someday our country can somehow get back to those days again. Looking at our current state of affairs in this nation and around the world, there is only one conclusion that can be made…the good old days are over.

I wrote this article because children being born today, in my opinion, will not be able to look back and remember the near future as “the good old days”. As I write this, the US national debt is at $16.2 trillion with unfunded liabilities of $123.3 trillion. With Uncle Ben’s QE3 promising to print fiat money perpetually can there be any doubt that the days of the US dollar being the world currency are numbered. Everyone reading this article has a share of $442,881 of the nation’s debt and liabilities. If your children or grandchildren can’t read yet, please tell them that they also owe $442,881 as well and thank them for supporting our wasteful spending that got us to this point. Source: http://usadebtclock.com/

But don’t worry, there are elections coming. Surely the American public can see the dire straits our nation is in and elect leaders who can recognize and deal with the nation’s problems and bring us back to becoming a nation of producers instead of consumers, right? Leaders will be elected who will make the extreme sacrifices necessary to bring forth a United States where the outstretched hands of the masses will be filled with charitable donations from a robust society instead of being empty, waiting for them to be stuffed with their entitlement from the government, all the while feeling as though they earned it because they stand unproductively on dirt within our border.

I have to apologize for the last paragraph; I have always wondered what it would feel like to write fiction. The hard cold reality is that there is no possible orderly way out of the financial mess our society is in and the above mentioned dirt was probably the last thing made in the USA. To break it down simply, here are some simple and easy to understand economical facts:

1. You need to produce more than you consume or you are broke.

2. You cannot pay off a credit card with a credit card without consequences.

3. There is no possible way the nation’s debts and unfunded liabilities will ever be paid.

Currently, the Federal Reserve purchases the vast majority of the US Debt. There simply aren’t many buyers left who believe it to be a sound investment anymore. In 2011, congress waited until the last minute to raise the debt ceiling after much political wrangling back and forth. Was there ever any doubt by anyone that it would happen? Is there any doubt that it will happen again? What happens when it hits $50 trillion? As long as we have the ability to continue to print more money to fund our yearly deficit and make payments on the interest of existing debt, it will continue. As it continues, the US dollar will continue to be worth less and less. Commodities such as food, gas and all physical goods purchased will get more and more expensive, leaving less and less purchasing power for the American people.

You don’t have to be Nostradamus to predict that we are on the cusp of a major financial collapse. I’m not only talking about the United States, I’m talking about the world. The can has been kicked down the road almost as far as it can be kicked and we just passed a dead end sign. We will soon see massive inflation or hyperinflation, riots in the streets as we have seen around the world and as I have heard stated many times, people with nothing left to lose will lose it.

So what can we do? The answer can be summed up in one word. Prepare. Prepare as though it may happen tomorrow. Prepare as though your life and the lives of your loved ones depend on it because it does and they do. Start exercising and working out to prepare your body for the tough times coming. Prepare yourself mentally so that when it hits the fan you don’t find yourself in the panicked state that 95% of the public will be in. Prepare to be warm when it is cold outside or cool when it is hot outside. Prepare a plan of what you and your family will do at different levels of collapse. Prepare to eat when grocery store shelves are bare. Prepare to drink when the tap fails to deliver water. Prepare for what to do when your neighbors or family or friends show up at your doorstep because they were too busy watching television. Prepare to defend what needs to be defended. Prepare prepare prepare.

Realize that at this point there is nothing you can do about the debt of this nation. There is nothing you can do to change what is coming in the Middle East. Regardless of the result of the upcoming election, neither candidate has dared utter the words broke or sacrifice. Your only job at this point is to get yourself and your loved ones you choose to help through what is coming, whatever it may be. This isn’t being selfish. This, my friends…is survival.

I truly believe that when the dust settles, we will emerge as a great and free nation. Life will be hard, but there will be more meaning to the tasks of the day. Communities will be stronger. People will be healthier. Families will be closer. To get from this point to that, there will be much misery, but the greater the struggle, the greater the victory. It is up to us in the prepping community to get our families and loved ones through the upcoming collapse. I pray that someday, my children and grandchildren will be able to look back and say “Those were the good old days.” because I chose to prepare.

Proverbs 22:3 A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.

Take refuge, my friends.

God Bless,

By Norse Prepper

www.shtfplan.com