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I realize this is a few days old now but I wanted to give my opinion on this for what its worth. I'd say a couple of things are possible, including a complete shutdown of emotional and rational thought for a time. What I mean by this is for her to simply do the easiest thing or to do whatever everyone else expects from her to limit potential conflict. (In my opinion only,) after this death she may not be able to handle conflict as well as usual. Any attempts to do so may only bring out her depression and increase the risk of a, very painful, nervous breakdown. So in essence, kind of an automatic or zombie-like state. Feelings of guilt and depression, would definitely be a probability. And another strong probability would be a desire to keep people away from her for both fear of losing them and an inability to effectively be in a relationship for a period of time. A repression of all emotions, even if they are usually positive like love or happiness may also occur. Most positive emotions cannot be really felt until the issue is resolved in some way. Any emotional release, like laughing, may suddenly turn into a display of grief. Self-medicating behaviour, such as alcohol abuse or excessive sleep may also be likely. Almost all of these symptoms would pass with time, and sort of become psychological scars that may have long-term effects on personality. But these effects are usually subtle and the adage time heals all wounds has some truth to it. It's also possible that the death would have no adverse effects at all. But for this to be likely, she would need a good support system. That's my take, I'm no expert. Hope this was useful. |