Psychological first aid should go hand in hand with physical first
aid. The discovery of a physical injury or cause for an inability
to function does not rule out the possibility
of a psychological injury (or vice versa). A physical injury and
the circumstances surrounding it may actually cause an emotional
injury that is potentially more serious than the physical injury;
both injuries need treatment. The person suffering from pain,
shock, fear of serious damage to his body, or fear of death does
not respond well to joking, indifference, or fearful-tearful attention.
Fear and anxiety may take as high a toll of the soldier's strength
as does the loss of blood.
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