FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? OVC
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2001??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 202/307-0703
NEW HANDBOOK OFFERS GUIDANCE FOR VICTIMS OF
TERRORISM
WASHINGTON, D.C. ? A new handbook released
today by the Justice Department?s Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) describes
some common reactions to terrorist violence and provides practical suggestions
for coping with the resulting trauma.
OVC developed Coping After Terrorism: A Guide for Healing and
Recovery based on input from terrorism victims as well as mental health,
crisis counseling, and victim assistance professionals.?
?The raw emotions that victims of terrorism
experience can be simply overwhelming,? said OVC Director John W. Gillis.? ?I hope that this handbook will be a helping
hand by providing information that will serve as a first step on the long road
to recovery.?
? Coping
After Terrorism: A Guide for Healing and Recovery outlines different types
of reactions that victims of terrorism have, such as fear, guilt, anger,
depression, loneliness, isolation and panic.
For each of these, the handbook offers explanations as to why victims
might feel that way, so that the victims can understand and cope with these
emotions.? It also describes common
physical symptoms, including headaches, fatigue, nausea and sleeplessness.? ????????
The handbook stresses the importance of
seeking help and finding ways to help others.
It emphasizes the importance of talking with trained counselors and
other victims that can provide needed support.
OVC will distribute the handbook to victims
of the September 11 terrorist attacks through the International Red Cross, the
Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Justice Department?s Executive Office
of U.S. Attorneys, the Department of Health and Human Services? Center for
Mental Health Services and state victim assistance coordinators.
Copies of Coping After Terrorism: A Guide for Healing and Recovery
are available through OVC?s Victims and Family Assistance Website, which can be
found at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/terrorismvictimassistance
or through the main OVC Website at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc.? Copies are also available from the OVC
Resource Center at
1-800/627-6872.??????
Additional information is available for
victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks and their families through OVC's
Family Assistance Call Center at 1-800/331‑0075.?
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