The reality of a potential impending large earthquake in the Pacific Northwest has made its way to the general public in the last few years. When the New Yorker article “The Really Big One” came out in the summer of 2015, many of us were shocked and genuinely scared. After some initial shock wore off, people reacted in a number of ways ranging from buying earthquake insurance to storing up food and water to just living with a new level of anxiety they hadn’t known before (the latter probably being the most common reaction). I recall talking to an insurance agent soon afterward and he told me that it was crazy how many people had rushed to buy earthquake insurance recently. He didn’t miss a beat transitioning to sales mode in his next statement, which was something like, “you should consider buying some also to protect your family.”
But what should we actually do with this information that is new to many of us? And, to address the title of this blog post, how do we deal with “earthquake anxiety”?
Consider this goofy story as an anxiety illustration: I was recently in a restroom at Starbucks and the lock on the door didn’t give me any evidence that it worked. This mattered because the door opened to a view of the coffee line and cash register. I played with the lock and couldn’t gain any confidence in it. It made almost no sound when I pressed it, and it didn’t seem to even change position. Opening and closing the door a couple of times didn’t verify it’s functionality, except for a small, barely audible click. I reluctantly used the restroom anyway, but not without some anxiety.
That’s already too much information with the personal restroom story. But here’s the point about anxiety: it is caused by feeling like you have no control over a potential problem. The solution, I believe, is a combination of taking purposeful action that addresses the problem and letting go of control over the things you don’t have control over.
Consider how much lower my anxiety in the restroom would have been if the door had a deadbolt that made a loud noise as it was being engaged and it visibly could be seen sliding into place through the crack in the door. In the same way, adequate earthquake preparedness steps give you confidence that you have addressed the problem and will likely survive “the really big one”, and even thrive in the aftermath and be able to help others.
I just mentioned that the solution to earthquake anxiety is to take purposeful action that addresses the problem and to let go of control over things you don’t have control over. The first step involves practical actions, many of which could be accomplished by anyone living in the Pacific Northwest. The second is more related to mental health, psychology, etc, which I’m not an expert on (but see Matthew 6:25-34 if you are inclined as I am to address this through the lens of faith).
I will dive into some specifics in further posts, mainly related to actions we can take, but for now I want to point out that we can only do what we can do. We can’t control when an earthquake (or any future high stress event) will come, but we can make a huge difference in our resilience when it does. A head-in-the-sand approach is irrational and will not make anxiety go away. Also, resigning to the overwhelm of tasks ahead is not a good approach, either: “I’m not going to do anything because there would be too much to do”, or “it will happen if it happens” are examples of this kind of thinking.
The work ahead in earthquake resilience can indeed be overwhelming, but even just a first few steps can make a big difference on an individual or family level than not being prepared at all. A good preparedness plan will add redundancy to whatever plans you put in place. This is a topic, that, if you plan to live in the northwest for a long time, is very important. What should your next steps be in 2017 to make yourself and your family more earthquake resilient? If you have no ideas, stay tuned here…
