We have all followed the discussion as to whether it was right to state that war may come to Sweden and that everyone should be prepared. We have heard and talked, thought and thought. More or less. For me less. Of course we should be prepared, I think. And opinions and feelings and thoughts are stirred up in social media and in the coffee room. As always. I think. I don’t get excited and strangely haven’t heard much about it in my social or professional life.
Maybe it’s because I’m a psychotherapist specializing in trauma and crisis management. Being prepared goes without saying. For the expected and unexpected. For the likely and the unbelievable. For the wanted and for the unwanted. At a reasonable, adequate level.
Of course we need to have preparedness as a country. The armed forces, municipalities, regions, companies, organizations need to cope with the tasks and responsibilities, expectations and demands that they have to shoulder. More than those charged with preparing us for war can contribute and prepare to offer their services and products.
But we? Each and everyone of us? As individuals? Can you prepare for war? In addition to having a reasonable prep box. By the way, only the electricity is needed and you can’t get water or heat.
In a column in DN (30/1), Marina Ferhatovic writes that it is not possible to mentally prepare for war. That it is like preparing to get cancer. How do you prepare for the experience of being killed at any moment for nothing, she writes. I understand.
It’s about being able to handle difficult life events without succumbing.
But there is something we can do. Coping with unexpected, unwanted, traumatizing events like cancer, loss, war, accident—yes, crisis as well as war—we can foster certain elements of what it means to be a resilient human being.
To be resilient. Not steadfast and made of stone, but it’s about being able to deal with difficult life events without going under.
If we continuously focus in life on doing what we can to experience security, calmness, togetherness, trust and hope, the conditions are significantly greater if the unexpected and unwanted should occur. Regardless of whether you will experience a divorce, conflict at work, lose some physical ability, encounter accidents, illness or war, we can prepare. Mentally.
Do you feel that there is security somewhere in life, that peace can be found from time to time even when things rock under your feet, that we have some groups that we belong to and where we matter, that we know who we can trust and not and that we have sufficient self-confidence, it means that hope is not lost. If we’re just going to take one day at a time, together with someone or a few that you trust.
I meet people and groups in difficult situations in my work. For those people who have these principles in place reasonably, the ability to handle the situation is greater and the road to recovery is significantly more hopeful.
So of course we can mentally prepare for war.
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