What We Learned From the 9/11 First Anniversary

Abstract

This article discusses how counselors can assist individuals, families, and communities to prepare and deal effectively with first-year anniversaries of traumatic events. These anniversaries represent psychological importance to traumatic events, so the effects need to be addressed preventively, not reactively. Counselors can become important resources in helping individuals, families, and communities in this process. This article provides specific guidelines in what needs to be considered when dealing with survivors, victims, their families and friends, communities, and the country at large to prepare and deal more effectively with the one-year anniversary of traumatic events that influence not just a community but the whole nation. More specifically, the article emphasizes five areas for counselors to consider: (a) expected anniversary reactions, (b) education that can help prepare for the one-year anniversary, (c) mental health services, (d) how counselors can help schools with the one-year anniversary, and (e) what counselors should remember.

Anticipatory Anniversary Effects and Bereavement: Development of an Integrated Explanatory Model

“…This seems to be a way of reviving the dead or punishing the self for having survived (Renvoize & Jain, 1986). Anniversaries of traumas can affect more than just those closest to the deceased, particularly in their capacity to remind people of their own vulnerability or similar losses of their own (Jordan, 2003).…”

“…Other reactions such as sleeping problems, irritability, and physical hyperactivity have also been found. Depending on the nature of the trauma, a sense of insecurity, hopelessness, and frustration can also be reexperienced (Jordan, 2003). Other frequently reported reactions include memories, dreams, and feelings.…”

“…Taking the September 11 terrorist attack as an example, some of those affected perceived the first anniversary as a time for closure, a positive time at the community level (Jordan, 2003), as well as a landmark point in recovery (Myers, 1994).…”

“…Anniversary effects in relation to emotionally distressing events other than bereavement have been reported in the literature, including abortion (Franco et al, 1989), accidents (Beratis, Gourzis, & Gabriel, 1994), termination of significant relationships (Earls & Wolf, 1963), childhood incest (Green, 1982), natural disasters (Assanangkoenchai, Tangboonngam, Sam-angsri, & Edwards, 2007), suicide or homicide (Pollock, 1975), terrorist attacks (Argyrides & Downey, 2004;Jordan, 2003), and war (Morgan, Hill, Fox, Kingham, & Southwick, 1999;Morgan, Kingham, Nicolaou, & Southwick, 1998). Anniversary reactions have also been reported in the course of normal grief (Raphael, 1983;Shuchter & Zisook, 1993;Zisook, Devaul, & Click, 1982), although some consider unresolved grief as a necessary condition for anniversary reactions (Musaph, 1990;Smith, 1997).…”

Commemorative Events and National Identity: Commemorating Death and Disaster in Australia

“…Indeed, recognizing and acknowledging feelings that may surface around the anniversary of the death of a loved one can be a crucial part of the recovery process. Bereaved individuals are often encouraged by health professionals to recognize anniversaries and to find a way to acknowledge their significance (Jordan, 2003;Nemeth et al, 2012). Arguably one of the best known anniversaries in contemporary times is the annual commemoration of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York.…”