Caitlin Constantine: Journalism and emotional trauma

Caitlin Constantine
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My average workday involves writing several news stories, and as anyone who watches the news can attest, most of them will not be happy stories. There are the occasional feel-good spots about people who make the most of tough circumstances or break world records, but for the most part, I spend my time writing about the worst days in people's lives.

Caitlin Constantine, journalist and writer owns her troubles in her blog.

If you end up in the news, it's more likely you are there because of some unimaginable horror than because of something amazing you did.

It's difficult not to be affected by the work we do as journalists, although most of us have developed ways to cope. We make inappropriate jokes, we keep a bit of distance, we harden our shells, we don't linger too long on the details. Some of us drink a lot or smoke.

If we allowed the full impact of the stories we cover to penetrate our hearts, we'd never get anything done. So we find ways to protect ourselves.

But some stories still manage to penetrate the carefully constructed defenses. Obviously, reporters and photographers who are actually out there are most vulnerable. Poynter Institute recently ran a column about a New York Daily News reporter who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after one of the WTC towers collapsed practically right on top of him.