What causes a person to survive that in prolonged captivity under inhuman conditions?

Their photos of the captive survivors who are released from the brutal Hamas jaws as they are pale and senses will bring in the Israeli public consciousness for many more years. When you see people who have survived inhumane situations and have been almost resolute to death while staying in dark tunnels and undergoing cruel psychological terrorism – you can’t help but wonder how to survive this unimaginable situation, and what holds them alive.According to Dr. Idit Gutman’s explanation, a clinical psychologist from Tel Aviv University, there are two main aspects that provide a certain explanation of human ability to hold life in unbearable situations. . While there was a concentration camp, he developed a theory known as Logo therapy. He said that ‘Whoever has for what – can bear how.’ I mean – if you have motivated to live, you will find the way to do it. In most people, the main motivation is people – whether it is a close family or a broader perception of the Jewish people. The idea is actually thinking about someone who is not you for which you have any to live. This is really what allowed him to deal with the great horrors that he had undergone while staying in the concentration camp. ”

 

 

 

Another, more difficult and complex reason, is related to Dr. Gutman to the defense mechanisms in the human psyche. A dissociation, for example, is a situation where one feels detached from the emotional state in which he is, as if he were a viewer who looks at him from the side. ”

“During survival, all mental and physical resources are directed to survival. This is why there are almost no captivity or suicidal thoughts. However, when returning to the familiar reality, different mental and physical symptoms may appear”

Dr. Idit Gutman

The significant problem, she said, stems when there is no need to use the same protection mechanisms, such as in the case where the captivity is released. “This step actually requires the survivor to recognize the hard reality and to deal with it. During survival, all mental and physical resources are directed to survival. This is why there are almost no captivity or suicidal thoughts. It is very much to accept the required therapeutic mantle that will help those who have been able to survive the captivity to continue to survive in their real life. ”

 

 

 

Furthermore, Dr. Gutman explains that people in captivity do not feel that they have any choice, including the choice of life or death. In such a situation, prisoners actually lose their thinking ability. The poor physical, depression and inability to move and move prevent basic thinking ability. “She said the situation is somewhat similar to the person suffering from Alzheimer’s – even if something bad happens to him, he cannot respond to it rationally. Or a sense of some control, it cannot exercise discretion at all. In the most extreme case you may be able to pray for death but do not think you have the ability to influence it. ”