The battle is not yet over for Janelle Manahan, just because she has checked out of Asian Hospital recently. She still has to grapple with two forces: external and internal.
The external one — consisting of police investigations and media interviews over the murder of her boyfriend Ram Revilla — is something she has little control over. It's the internal one, which requires her to exorcise her personal demons, that she has full control over.
And this is where Janelle needs no ordinary kind of help.
She's off to a good start. Janelle has her parents and phalanx of friends to see her through the night. She can tell them what's bugging her anytime she feels like it.
As psychologist Randy Dellosa says, "Janelle needs to surround herself with friends and loved ones who can provide her emotional support. She will need to express her feelings instead of bottling them up inside."
It also helps that she tells everyone she misses Ram and recalls her fond memories of him. It's part of the healing process.
"Later on," Dellosa suggests, "she might want to create her own personal ceremony or ritual to celebrate the life they shared together."
But human help can only do so much. Dellosa observes that "victims of trauma often struggle with questions about the meaning of life, the goodness of God, and the evil which humans are capable of doing."
Thus, he thinks Janelle needs a spiritual adviser to make sense of everything that's happening to her.
On top of that, Dellosa advises not just an ordinary psychologist or psychiatrist for Janelle, but a specialist in grief therapy and psycho-trauma therapy.
"Because of the gravity of her experience, Janelle is at the risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression or anxiety disorder," Dellosa explains.
He is afraid she will go through "grief spasms, or occasional attacks of intense sadness and emotional pain." After all, Ram's was no ordinary death. She saw him die in a most gruesome way right before her very eyes.
Because of this, Dellosa is afraid Janelle's grief can persist — even for a lifetime.
Another hurdle victims of frustrated murder like Janelle might go through is "survivor guilt," which Dellosa says could stem from the fact that she's alive and Ram is not.
So how could Janelle heal from emotional scars that threaten to maim her for good?
"Janelle can use media to her advantage not only in telling her side of the story, but in inspiring people to be strong amidst the hardships they may be experiencing," states Dellosa. "Through media, Janelle can support an advocacy for helping other survivors of heinous crimes."
The other silver lining concerns her career.
The best actors are not those who live sheltered lives, but battle-scarred warriors who have learned how to fight and conquer their personal demons.
The good news is Janelle can turn things in her favor by digging deep into her emotions and using them to make her a young actress of incredible depth.
"The experience can hopefully transform Janelle into a serious, sensitive and credible actress," says Dellosa.
Yes, Janelle's story is far from over. Let's wait and see if she will turn it into a story of triumph or one of continued pain.
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