Flashbacks

Feeling out of touch with reality

When we are victims of a crime, everything may seem surreal at first. We know what happened and yet it is hard to believe. Many people feel a kind of emotional emptiness and may have difficulty remembering what happened in detail. We may find it hard to talk about the incident and to take in any information given to us. It is at this time too that severe reactions can occur, for example, bouts of crying, or feelings of shock or of anger at the offender. However, after a while, everything becomes clearer and it gets easier to talk about what happened.

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Flashbacks

After being subjected to a crime, some people think constantly about what happened. For the majority of us, these symptoms disappear over time. In some cases, memories of the incident can remain for longer, triggered by a certain image, smell or another memory, which may temporarily cause the same reactions as the crime itself. The images may be so clear and so strong that it feels as if the crime is being committed all over again. These recurring memories, known as flashbacks, can be very distressing. If these reactions do not disappear after a few months, it is important to seek help.

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Anxiety and difficulty concentrating

Being a victim of crime can make us feel anxious and vulnerable. Often our reactions become more obvious when we relive what happened through memories and flashbacks. This anxiety may lead to difficulty in concentrating and being easily irritated.

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Sleeping problems

For some time after a crime, many victims have difficulty in falling asleep because they lie in bed going over what happened and, even after they have fallen asleep, it is not unusual to have nightmares about the incident. It is also common for people to wake up several times during the night. These sleeping problems may also make us more easily irritated.

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