ODESSA, Texas — Every bit of support counts in situations when a community goes through a traumatic situation. At times those affected are so young it is difficult to process the shock of what happened.
NewsWest 9 spoke with Chandra Coleman, coordinator for the Family Resiliency Center of the Permian Basin. She said it's important to have open communication and so people know that they are not alone.
"The easiest way to define trauma is anything that interrupts the way that you live, laugh, love, or learn," said Coleman. "It affects your ability to work like the way you did before or to go to school and complete assignments. You feel isolated when you interact with people."
Coleman said trauma could lead to changes in behavior.
"We often see a loss of interest in things that a person enjoyed to do before," said Coleman. "You also lose a feeling of safety where that traumatic event happened. For example, if it happened in a school, it can be difficult for students to go back to an environment and feel safe where we worked so hard to create an environment to create that safety."
Coleman told NewsWest 9 that trauma can affect anyone, but for some speaking out can be more difficult.
"It's not a weakness to need help it's bravery and courage to reach out," said Coleman. "I don't know anybody who is happy and healthy who has not have had help along the way. We all go through things that we cannot process on our own. That is why we have people that can help us."
Coleman emphasizes on the importance of getting help when you feel it's necessary and that no one should ever feel alone.
"It's okay to feel angry, it's okay to feel confused and all those feelings are okay," said Coleman. "We just tell people you cannot stay there, you can have a bad day, but you cannot have a bad life as a result of not getting some help."
For more information on mental health resources click here.