Earthquake and Child Psychology

The rattling that shook the whole nation has shaken our mindset even harder. Scientists claim that the clash of the Indian and the Eurasian plates gave birth to the massive earthquake while some people state that it is due to god Shivaa's leela. Whatever the reason is the fact is that the 7.9 magnitude jolt shook the country and has left thousands dead and many more injured. Places that once were homes are now nothing more than piles of rubble and sites for mass graveyard. Dead bodies have still been left unattended and people have lost hope of finding any belongings in a usable state. It feels like we have been engulfed into darkness and in every lightning corpses are produced.

Some are fortunate enough that even today their houses in which they live are intact and habitable. However there are thousands who have become homeless and are forced to live in open regardless of the harsh weather. Thus in order to provide a helping hand to those we made a focal point: to help children. UN estimates that more than 1 million children are affected by the recent earthquake and these problems should be addressed as soon as possible. In order to assess the impacts we went to Kavre, Sindupalchok, Dhading and Kathmandu. The assessment in Dhading was easier due to abundance in stationery and the guidance of psychologist Ganga Pathak.

While in Kathmandu we are still conducting daily observation of the children. When asked to draw cracked buildings, injured people ,hospitals and black Dharara were all they could come up with, portraying their mindset which has been heavily disturbed by earthquake. Some children tightly clung to their parents with every minor aftershocks while some never let tears off their eyes, some had become claustrophobic and insomniac while some never let their parents off their sight. According to the parents the children under tarpaulins had lost their appetite and refused to return to their homes even after a week of the quake and would just gaze away.

After reaching to the disaster zones it could be analyzed that the places which gained attention wanes were mounted and piled up with relief materials and funds while others who were equally hit by the quake were empty handed. From the numerous field visits it could be concluded that children from the villages were in a better mental state compared to that of city. .Some of the reasons behind are:

1) Free space: Unplanned urbanization and few open spaces compel people into crowded situations with unknown people making the children feel uneasy to move around. False rumors quickly spread in such places further contributing to fear and the terror.

2) Media: With the media outlets concentrated in the city, the children are quickly exposed to the depressing news of deaths and injuries further traumatizing them.

3) No means of distraction: Usually in the village areas the children are engaged in something or other. They have to look after the livestock and commit to household chores. But it’s not so for the urban area. Closed entertainment centers, schools, malls and no proper access to technology has further worsened the situation making it hard for them to open up.

In "Child friendly Spaces" a program organized by UNICEF, World Education foundation and CWISH I as a teacher found the students confined to themselves in the initial phase. With the days that passed by, games, dance, activities and story books gradually returned them to their normal self. Taking a glance at the children's situation they are in dire need of motivation, counseling and psychological treatment. Some may be able to cope up and heal with time while for those who are deeply affected by the quake must go under creative expression therapies, counseling and various other therapies under expert guidance

Children are raw and immature to the immensity of the devastation and problems. Children have a lot to learn and are very sensitive to situations and being so imagine the trauma and wound inflicted upon the minds of innocence and compassion. If the problems are not addressed immediately then it might leave them scarred for life.