Hi all,
It is pathetic to see such an event happen but apparently they seem to be frequenting a lot lately. What is more shocking is the desire to become famous, albeit in a wrong way. The shooter himself confesses that this will lead to his immortality. Besides, our media makes no mistake in materializing his wishes. It makes sure that he becomes (in)famous as he desired by reminding us in every way possible and by every means possible for the next few days until it is etched in us.
What is more painful is that media barely talks about the losses of the families (including his own) that have suffered from the incident, and their agony is not shared as much.
Nonetheless, as a psychiatrist, it becomes more and more difficult for us to manage our own teenage patients who are frustrated by day to day problems and have similar issues as this shooter. What worries me most is the inspiration which it leaves for the weak minded to pursue such avenues. Many of my patients talked about the Virginia tech incidence and I am sure many will come and try to debate on this event. How do we prevent this to become an inspiration? Was it really necessary to make the suicide note public? How, as psychiatrist can we be assured that one day this will not happen to our own patient? What is the role of media during these gloomy times?
Comments? Questions? Suggestions?
Shiv
