大象传媒

Many thousands of children have suffered as a consequence of the deadly earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.
What can be done to help the children going forward, who might be traumatised by what they've witnessed?

Aysegul Metindogan is a clinical psychologist. She studied the impact the 1999 earthquake in Turkey had on children.

She explains that many children do understand the overall situation of what has happened, but may not be able to talk about it. She told 大象传媒 OS how they deal with something as traumatic as an earthquake.聽

"They can laugh, but that doesn't mean they don't understand... they all understand that something really, really bad is happening... when you think about the very long-term effects of these disasters and these earthquakes... you may see relationship problems, guilt, shame... hopelessness may actually be present in their lives."

(Photo: Displaced Syrians children sit at a temporary accommodation centre erected to support people affected by a devastating earthquake in Gaziantep, Turkey, February 14, 2023. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani)

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