Psychic numbing is a common reaction to trauma, particularly to extended trauma such as the two epidemics. Numbing helps one endure the traumatic experience by allowing dissociation from frightening, painful feelings and, thus, from the significance of the enveloping event. During the event, numbing is thus often helpful, particularly if it is not so profound that it interferes with one’s ability to pragmatically respond in useful ways. When sustained long after the event, numbing is problematic: disconnection from feelings fragments one’s internal life and obstructs interpersonal connections.
