What I would add to Robert's comments are that it is essential to talk about how one is feeling about what one has covered. I made the mistake of thinking that telling a friend about the horrific things I had heard and seen was debriefing. I was not dealing with how it was making me feel, what my core emotional responses were to the situations. As a result, I later found myself in quite dire straits.

I appreciate Robert's encouragement to the journalist (above) to direct their colleague to immediate psychological assistance for suicide assessment and would add that this could include contacting a therapist through the news organization's employee assistance plan, their local Crisis Line (to talk and/or request referrals to local counsellors), or going to the local hospital emergency to speak to a physician or psychiatrist.

Also, of note in Robert's response above is some incorrect information that needs clarification. He used two terms "assignment trauma injury" and "assignment stress injury" interchangeably and incorrectly. The former has no know meaning and I introduced the latter (Assignment Stress Injury) as an umbrella term that includes the many possible responses to trauma-related reporting (e.g., post-traumatic stress, depression, anxiety). For anyone interested in knowing more about this, I have been invited to write an article about it for J-Source and will submit this shortly. Secondly, Robert also mentioned "counter-transference," misusing it to refer to a stress response known as "secondary traumatization." This term is used within the psychological community to indicate that a person has been deeply affected by cumulative witnessing of trauma-related material. It is important to recognize that this is a normal response to this type of witnessing and should not be seen as a pathology or weakness on behalf of the witnessing journalist. Once people understand what is happening, and that their response is a normal one, it is much easier to begin taking steps towards self-care.

Again, I commend Robert for his commitment to the issue of trauma and peer support as this is an important resource for people (as Ruth and Mike reiterate); however, it is important to remember that there are only limited supports that peers can provide when struggles are cumulative and become more complex. Professional counsellors or other mental health professional need to be a part of the conversation.

A great resource for journalists dealing with emotional fallout from tough stories is the Dart Center on Journalism and Trauma on the web at http://www.dartcenter.org/ The center offers annual journalism fellowships to improve coverage of victims of violence -- and to better understand how journalists are affected by the stories we write about. Journalists like myself who have attended the fellowship have set up our own nonprofit called the Dart Society to reach out to colleagues and foster better coverage of trauma-related issues. If you want more info contact me at rteich5@hotmail.com

Thanks for talking openly about a difficult subject.
I've also covered some trials that included evidence and testimony that has been graphic and disturbing.
It's in the nature of the business to delve into the problem areas of our society, and what we find often shakes the foundation of how the world should be.
I've found the support of other professional people, who may deal with similar issues, is invaluable. I've been fortunate to have friends that are social workers, ministers, colleagues.
The opportunity to talk openly with a variety of friends helps me to keep things in perspective.
There was a study of journalists and trauma done last year, but haven't seen the results yet.