A disaster or emergency can change more than just physical surrounding—they shake up routines, relationships, and emotions. It’s common for people’s reactions to change from day to day or sometimes from moment to moment. This can be very challenging for people, families, and communities.
Everyone copes differently. Give yourself, your family, and your community time to grieve, to adjust, and to get used to changes and new routines. Healing takes time and support.
The following information on stress, family, work, and finances can help you recover and stay well.
What can help
- Create structure. Make simple to-do lists and get back to daily routines. Doing familiar things helps you feel calm and gives you a sense of control.
- Limit big changes. Avoid major decisions or transitions if possible while you’re still adjusting.
- Talk it out. When you are ready, share your feelings with someone you trust. It can help you cope with what you’ve been through. Naming emotions like “I feel angry” or “I feel overwhelmed” helps you process them.
- Take care of yourself. Try to eat well, be active, rest, and get enough sleep. Avoid substance use or gambling as a way to cope.
- Stay connected. Build your community and personal support network by staying connected to old friends and making new ones.
- Use local supports. Find reliable information, help, and resources in your community.
- Watch for signs of stress. Early support makes a big difference. If stress is getting in the way of your ability to parent, work, or function, reach out.
Common signs of stress
Stress can show up in many ways. Here are some signs to watch for:
Physical, cognitive (thinking), and behavioural
- moodiness or crying easily
- headaches
- stomach problems
- appetite changes
- feeling tired or a lack of energy
- changes in sleep
- trouble concentrating or paying attention
- constantly thinking about the event
- having flashbacks to the disaster or emergency
- disoriented or confused
- vision or hearing problems, like tunnel vision or muffled hearing
- increased substance use or gambling
- staying away from people or things that you normally like
- changes in spiritual or religious practices – increased or decreased
Emotional
- feeling hopeless or helpless
- feeling worried or frustrated
- feeling depressed or down
- feeling guilt, disappointment or shame
- feeling unmotivated
These signs of stress are common after a disaster or emergency. Usually, these reactions become easier or less over time. But media reports, anniversaries, or experiencing a similar disaster or emergency may trigger stress from the past. If stress limits you from doing things you need to do, talk to someone you trust or seek help from a healthcare provider.
Recovery Alberta has a list of immediate help or support resources, as well as information on how to find services in your community.
If you have thoughts of harming yourself, harming others, or suicide, make sure you aren’t alone and
call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department
right away.
Family
A disaster or emergency can affect many major areas of family life. It’s common for you and your family members to have confusing and sometimes scary thoughts and feelings that come and go. As life starts to return to normal, confusing feelings and scary thoughts should start to fade. Although, it takes time to adjust to doing things differently.
Knowing what to expect and taking action can help you and your family have a sense of hope, calm, safety, and well-being.
Things to think about
- Relationships can be tense when emotions are high after a disaster or emergency event.
- Changes to your family and partner relationships can add to your family’s stress, making it harder to work together to solve problems, make important decisions, or cope with new routines. This can also cause sleeping, eating and thinking problems, feelings of restlessness, headaches, and a general feeling of being sick.
- A breakdown in family and partner relationships can sometimes lead to verbal, emotional, and physical abuse. Abusive relationships are dangerous, and support is available anytime, day or night. Find supports and learn more about
what is healthy and what is not in relationships. Abuse is never OK.
- When homes are damaged or destroyed, families might need to move. This can cause more stress, or money and family problems.
- If you have to move out of your home, you may lose connection with family, friends, and community supports. This can decrease the support you would normally get from them and can add to your stress.
What can help
- Take time to reflect on how your situation is making you feel. Name your feelings. Ask yourself if your thoughts, feelings, actions, or reactions are different than normal and try to understand why. If you’re a parent, this can help you understand and cope with your child’s behaviours and feelings.
- Talk about it. When you’re ready, talk calmly and openly about your problems and feelings with family or someone you trust. This can help to relieve tension and stress and can help you find solutions. Talking about things can also help you learn more about yourself or your situation that you didn’t know or had not thought about before.
- If you have children, let them talk about the event from their point of view. Let them know it’s OK to be afraid, angry, or sad. These emotions are normal. But it’s not OK to be mean or hurt others. Listen to your children, get them to think of step-by-step solutions to their problems, and answer their questions as calmly and honestly as possible.
- Reassure your children that they are safe. Learn more about
helping children and teens recover from a disaster or emergency event.
- Keep routines as consistent as possible.
- It’s important to be supportive of older family members. Help older family members feel safe and secure, get reliable information and resources, and fill out paperwork. Help them stay connected to their friends, religion, and community. Help them stay healthy, physically and emotionally, and get care when needed. Learn more about
helping older family members recover from a disaster or emergency event.
- Express your needs honestly and openly with your family. The opinions of your family and others may be different than yours. Accept that differences are OK.
- When you feel stressed, take slow, deep belly breaths. You can also try stress-reducing activities like walking, yoga, physical activity, creative activities, or listening to music. These can help you relax, think clearly, and plan for the future. Learn more about
managing stress.
- Connect with others and remember to have fun as a family. Laughter is good for you.
- Get help. If you can’t solve a problem talk to friends, family, and neighbours. When you need to, reach out to helplines, community supports, or counselling centres.
- Talk about concerns or changes to your physical health. Changes to your physical health may be linked to emotional wellbeing and your ability to cope after a disaster or emergency.
Work
Things to think about
- You may be tired or stressed after a disaster or emergency event. This can affect your ability to think clearly and work with others.
- After a disaster or emergency event, the loss of community businesses, business relocation, lay-offs, or reduced work hours can affect your income and lead to money problems. You might have to look for a new job or a second job.
211 Alberta can connect you with financial supports in your area.
- There may be changes in your daily travel that can cause tension and stress.
What can help
- Contact your employer to let them know about your situation. If necessary, make an appointment to speak to your supervisor in-person or if your company has one, contact your human resources department.
- If you cannot contact or speak to your employer directly, call your co-workers. Find out if they know what’s happening.
- Check your employee benefits. See what support your employer provides.
- If you need a new job, contact local employment support agencies.
Call, text, or chat online with 211 Alberta to learn about agencies in your area.
- Find out if your route to work is damaged or closed because of the disaster or emergency event. If you can, commute with co-workers. Otherwise contact friends, emergency information lines, and community support services to find a ride to work.
- If you own a business consider developing a plan of action. Find and check all of your business, legal, and insurance papers. This will help you know your rights and responsibilities. Make a list of the things you need to reopen your business. Look for possible relocation sites for your business, if necessary. Make signs to post around the community to let customers know if, when, and where you will reopen. Connect with your staff and share any new personal contact information.
Finances
Things to think about
- After a disaster or emergency event, you may experience anxiety and stress related to money. Financial loss can lead to strong emotions.
- The cost of repair, recovery, and rebuilding can affect your budget, savings, and pension and retirement funds.
- You may be stressed when an insurance company doesn’t pay you back or a property assessment doesn’t cover the things you’ve lost.
- Feeling anxious about money can impact your relationship with family members.
- You may feel anxiety, guilt, shame, or anger when you spend money.
- Financial stress and burden might make it hard to sleep and eat well. It can also cause physical effects like headaches, feeling restless, and generally feeling sick. You may feel anxious or depressed. You may have thoughts of self-harm, harm to others, or even suicide. If you have thoughts of harming yourself, harming others, or suicide, make sure you aren’t alone and
call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department
right away.
What can help
- Make a list of your monthly income, regular expenses, and your debt. Contact your bank, a free financial counselling service, or a free legal advice service to get help. Find programs near you by calling, texting, or chatting online with
211 Alberta. If you have trouble making payments, talk to someone who can help you find more time to work out payment options. Some companies may offer this service.
- When you connect with people and support agencies, remember they’re there to work with you and give support. It’s OK to say that you’re feeling mad or frustrated, but verbal or physical abuse is never OK. Find
ways to express your anger in a healthier way.
You don’t have to go through a disaster or emergency alone. Ask for help when needed.
