P ost
E lection
S election
T rauma
Kerry Supporters Treated For 'Post-Election Selection Trauma' Following Bush Win
By Jimmy Moore
Talon News
November 10, 2004
BOCA RATON, FL (Talon News) -- Fifteen supporters of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John F. Kerry in Boca Raton, Florida have been treated for "post-election selection trauma" by licensed therapists over the past week following the abrupt end to the presidential election won by President George W. Bush.
The Boca Raton News reported on Monday that Florida psychologist Douglas Schooler has treated these clients with "intense hypnotherapy" to help them deal with the fact that Kerry conceded the election to Bush on Wednesday after realizing he did not have enough votes to win the Electoral College.
Schooler said his clients have revealed that they are "depressed and angry" and are "threatening to leave the country" because Bush won.
He added that these Kerry supporters are expressing feelings of "extreme anger, despair, hopelessness, powerlessness, a failure to function behaviorally, a sense of disillusionment, of not wanting to vote anymore."
"We're talking about a deep, unhealthy personal suffering that can best be remedied by intensive short-term therapy," Schooler noted to Boca Raton News. "They were emotionally paralyzed, shocked and devastated."
In fact, a young Kerry supporter from Georgia named Andrew Veal allegedly killed himself in New York City where the World Trade Center towers once stood over the weekend following Kerry's loss.
Mental health care doctors in South Florida say the expectations of Kerry supporters in Palm Beach County that the election would drag out for weeks due to a recount were dashed by the sudden end to the election just one day after the voting was conducted.
American Health Association Executive Director Rob Gordon, who was dispatched in 2001 to Ground Zero to assist the families of the victims of 9/11, said this "post-election selection trauma" is something "we're working to develop a counseling program for it."
"It's like post-traumatic stress syndrome, but it's a short-term shock rather than a childhood trauma," Gordon said in a statement, concerned that there may be other suicide attempts like the one that was done in New York.
"There are definitely people depressed by John Kerry's loss, and this can easily lead to suicides like the one we saw up in New York this weekend," Gordon explained. "Luckily, it can be treated if people seek help. We're urging people to call us immediately if they feel depressed or know anyone who is seriously stressed out."
Mental health care support groups, such as Emotions Anonymous in Boca Raton, in Florida and across the country have been told to be on alert for a massive surge in their numbers in the coming weeks as more Kerry supporters look for relief from their distress.
"We'll let the Kerry voters talk about it and let off some steam, and by listening to other people's stories, we'll help them refocus and surrender to the things in their life which they can't possibly change," a spokeswoman Emotions Anonymous told Boca Raton News.
But not all support groups are as quickly embracing these Kerry supporters with their emotional reaction to the election.
"We're referring people with election-related stress to the Democratic National Committee," commented Center for Group Counseling spokeswoman Karen Jacobs.
Jacobs said they will assist them as well as they can, but they are not equipped to help with "a specific program for Kerry-related trauma."
Schooler said he and other mental health care doctors are available to offer "election therapy" to patients who need a session to make sense of the results of the election.
"A lot of Kerry voters don't know what to do with their anger, because there was no recount, so they've kept it bottled up," Schooler said. "I help them transform the anger into more positive emotions."
Copyright © 2004 Talon News -- All rights reserved.
----------------------------------------
Have a news tip for Talon News? Let us know at newstips@talonnews.com
E lection
S election
T rauma
Kerry Supporters Treated For 'Post-Election Selection Trauma' Following Bush Win
By Jimmy Moore
Talon News
November 10, 2004
BOCA RATON, FL (Talon News) -- Fifteen supporters of Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John F. Kerry in Boca Raton, Florida have been treated for "post-election selection trauma" by licensed therapists over the past week following the abrupt end to the presidential election won by President George W. Bush.
The Boca Raton News reported on Monday that Florida psychologist Douglas Schooler has treated these clients with "intense hypnotherapy" to help them deal with the fact that Kerry conceded the election to Bush on Wednesday after realizing he did not have enough votes to win the Electoral College.
Schooler said his clients have revealed that they are "depressed and angry" and are "threatening to leave the country" because Bush won.
He added that these Kerry supporters are expressing feelings of "extreme anger, despair, hopelessness, powerlessness, a failure to function behaviorally, a sense of disillusionment, of not wanting to vote anymore."
"We're talking about a deep, unhealthy personal suffering that can best be remedied by intensive short-term therapy," Schooler noted to Boca Raton News. "They were emotionally paralyzed, shocked and devastated."
In fact, a young Kerry supporter from Georgia named Andrew Veal allegedly killed himself in New York City where the World Trade Center towers once stood over the weekend following Kerry's loss.
Mental health care doctors in South Florida say the expectations of Kerry supporters in Palm Beach County that the election would drag out for weeks due to a recount were dashed by the sudden end to the election just one day after the voting was conducted.
American Health Association Executive Director Rob Gordon, who was dispatched in 2001 to Ground Zero to assist the families of the victims of 9/11, said this "post-election selection trauma" is something "we're working to develop a counseling program for it."
"It's like post-traumatic stress syndrome, but it's a short-term shock rather than a childhood trauma," Gordon said in a statement, concerned that there may be other suicide attempts like the one that was done in New York.
"There are definitely people depressed by John Kerry's loss, and this can easily lead to suicides like the one we saw up in New York this weekend," Gordon explained. "Luckily, it can be treated if people seek help. We're urging people to call us immediately if they feel depressed or know anyone who is seriously stressed out."
Mental health care support groups, such as Emotions Anonymous in Boca Raton, in Florida and across the country have been told to be on alert for a massive surge in their numbers in the coming weeks as more Kerry supporters look for relief from their distress.
"We'll let the Kerry voters talk about it and let off some steam, and by listening to other people's stories, we'll help them refocus and surrender to the things in their life which they can't possibly change," a spokeswoman Emotions Anonymous told Boca Raton News.
But not all support groups are as quickly embracing these Kerry supporters with their emotional reaction to the election.
"We're referring people with election-related stress to the Democratic National Committee," commented Center for Group Counseling spokeswoman Karen Jacobs.
Jacobs said they will assist them as well as they can, but they are not equipped to help with "a specific program for Kerry-related trauma."
Schooler said he and other mental health care doctors are available to offer "election therapy" to patients who need a session to make sense of the results of the election.
"A lot of Kerry voters don't know what to do with their anger, because there was no recount, so they've kept it bottled up," Schooler said. "I help them transform the anger into more positive emotions."
Copyright © 2004 Talon News -- All rights reserved.
----------------------------------------
Have a news tip for Talon News? Let us know at newstips@talonnews.com
