WARNING: This story contains discussion of suicide and traumatic events. Firefighter Rob Leathen says he was haunted by the memory of a woman he was trying to save. Leathen is one of the nearly two-thirds of Canadians to experience a traumatic event like a car crash , which is the most common type of traumatic event Canadians say they have been exposed to, according to the results of a new Statistics Canada survey.
Chances are, you or someone you know has been exposed to a traumatic event that leaves a lasting impact, based on the findings, which provide insight into the most common potentially traumatic events that adults living in Canada have experienced. In his 30-year career as a dispatcher and first responder, Leathen worked at a number of motor vehicle incidents. One involved resuscitating a woman who drove her vehicle off an embankment into a pond.
"I was responsible for looking after her airway," Leathen recalled. "The thing that really stuck with me with that one was ..
. Well, her eyes were open and I'm looking into her eyes as I'm trying to ventilate her." The woman did not survive.
Firefighter Rob Leathen worked at many traffic accidents over his career that left their mark. (Submitted by Rob Leathen) Statistics Canada calls stress a common experience. This week's report, based on its Survey on Mental Health and Stressful Events, looks at the connection stressful experiences that rise to the level of what they call "potentially traumatic events" have to symptoms of.
