Dawn Ostrem
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 26/01) - We woke up one morning and realized everything had changed.

Since Sept. 11 many people from Yellowknife will not take an international flight without thinking twice. Many will not casually brush away an unknown white powder without anthrax crossing their minds.

"Society may become more guarded and more stiff," explains local psychologist Terry Simmonds, who believes we, even in Yellowknife are under heightened stress.

There is no use minimizing what has happened, Simmonds says, because the war now lives at our doorstep.

Yet, maximizing it and living in a state of panic is also problematic.

He is sure people in Yellowknife have been affected. There are three levels of stress and Simmonds thinks most people in Yellowknife are currently at stage 2.

"There is an alarm stage that did not exist before," he says. "In which the heart beats faster and the blood pressure increases, people have aches and pains, ulcers, things like that."

At stage 2 people live day to day with too much adrenaline, increasing irritability and depression.

If not remedied through time or with help, people can move on to stage 3, when stress-related illnesses are a near certainty.

Simmonds says it may not be uncommon for aversive conditioning to come into play, such as seeing white powder, nothing more than baking soda or fertilizer, and still feeling ill.

"As psychologists we call this period sensitizing," Simmonds explains. When one begins to make "mountains out of molehills," he added, that is called "catastrophizing" and Yellowknife residents are not immune.

"For people who already have a lot of stress this is one more cookie on the plate ... and that may be all it takes to fill a plate," he said. "I would advise people to be cautiously optimistic.

"Do not watch CNN all the time," he suggests. "Do not watch it before you go to bed. Watch something pleasant and relaxing.

"Listen to music, have a pleasant discussion, listen to your inner dialogue and keep your thoughts free of Afghanistan and the World Trade Centre."

Turning to drugs

Simmonds says already more Canadians are turning to antidepressants and there is no reason to assume Yellowknife will be excluded.

Dr. Andre Corriveau, chief medical officer of the NWT, went to a session at Stanton Regional Hospital recently where doctors peppered him with questions about anthrax noting that that patients were getting curious.

"They wanted to be prepared," he said.

So far, there have been no Northern incidents involving anthrax, aside from a false alarm earlier this month at the Canada Post sorting plant.

So far, several cases of anthrax have been detected in the U.S. and though scares have shaken many organizations in Canada, so far none have resulted in confirmed positive cases.

To Yellowknifers, anthrax is a common word. Bison and other wildlife have contracted the spores from soil in this area and traditionally medication to treat that type in humans is common penicillin.

Corriveau said since no one knows if the anthrax spores used by terrorists were biologically engineered, a stronger antibiotic called Cipro has been flying off pharmacy shelves in many cities.

Shopper's Drug Mart manager Daryl Dolynny said people in Yellowknife haven't been storming the pharmacy for the drug, but some have asked for information.

"We have had people ask us what anthrax is," he said.

Dolynny echoed Corriveau's comments that anthrax here can be treated with more common antibiotics.

"In the media it seems to be the cure for anthrax," he said. "Cipro does work but it would never, in my mind, be considered first-line."

Certain professions at risk

Even though the powder discovered at the post office sorting plant turned out to be a false alarm, Simmonds says the stress weighing down our entire community is not surprising.

He said politicians and journalists here may be on edge since those professions are the ones targeted in the U.S.

When the powder was found at the postal sorting plant, RCMP, the fire department and a biological response team from Stanton Regional Hospital were disinfected with anti-bacterial agents on the scene.

"Those people might be feeling a little more uncomfortable," Simmonds says about the precautions these people underwent.

Barbara Hoddinott heads the Critical Incident Stress Management program in Yellowknife. That deals specifically with the stress piled on emergency workers.

Recently the team has been put on standby to go to the U.S. if needed, due to more attacks.

"We are all human and have certain stress," Hoddinott says.

Several different Christian organizations in Yellowknife have designated this weekend (Oct. 27 and 28) as a time to pray for, and think about, peace on behalf of all victims, including Muslim members of this community.

Simmonds said it is simple psychology to see that "anger begets anger" and "violence begets violence."

"Some people might want to pray or talk about it appropriately with someone, rationally in a safe place with safe people," he said. "Or, say 'no, I won't think about it.'"