Too Soon to Reflect on 9/11?
March 8, 2002 -- On March 11, two parallel towers of light powered by 88 searchlights aimed toward the heavens will light up lower Manhattan in remembrance of the twin towers of the World Trade Center that once dominated the New York City skyline.
While the gaping hole in the sky once occupied by the towers may easily be replaced, the void in the hearts and minds of many Americans after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 has yet to be filled. Six months after the tragedy, a new documentary scheduled to air on CBS on March 10 with footage shot inside the towers after the first plane hit is already stirring controversy from those who say it's too soon to revisit the scene of horror, and others who say it's a way to honor the victims.
But mental health experts say that kind of debate is to be expected because everyone is dealing with the events of 9/11 in their own way, which is just how it should be.
Too Soon for Reflection?
"I was a block and a half away when it happened, and I am curious. What did it feel like inside?" says psychologist Marilyn Puder-York, PhD, who lives and works in a private practice in lower Manhattan. She says it may actually have been easier for her to come to terms with 9/11 because she was faced with it every day once she returned home after being evacuated for five weeks.
For people who weren't directly affected by the events, she says it could be helpful to watch these types of accounts because they humanize the tragedy and bring people into the experience, making it more realistic for them.
Those who have screened the CBS documentary say it doesn't show any gruesome images of victims, but it does contain realistic portrayals of how people reacted to the events -- expletives and all.
"It's for people who want to experience a reliving of the event and get more data about it, but feel that they can handle it," says Puder-York. "Or even if they can't, if they need to cry and want to further experience it, then they should watch it."