VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Nine days after an EF3 tornado touched down in Virginia Beach, rain and possible thunderstorms are expected in the Hampton Roads community.
13News Now spoke to one mental health expert who said this can trigger stressors for those already living in heavily damaged communities.
"You can have anything from some general worries and anxiety to complete panic and so it is completely normal to have those feelings," said Mary Crutchfield, a psychiatric nurse practitioner.
Many living in the Great Neck area are dealing with negative emotions when it comes not only to the violent night the tornado touched down but also to how they plan to move forward.
Neighbors are expected to pay thousands of dollars to fix their homes and cars following the tornado's path. For those who are still dealing with the damages and are also prepping for more possible storms, it can feel overwhelming.
"I can see how some neighbors might be frightened by everything because of what happened to them," said Robert Van Den Berg.
Van Den Berg has lived in the Broad Bay Point Greens neighborhood for more than 40 years. He said while his own home came away unscathed, he knows many of his close neighbors are dealing with the stress of putting their lives and homes back together again.
"It's actually amazing that no one died from this," said Van Den Berg. "The amount of trees that fell, and everything that happened in the storm was just so much."
It may take months to upwards of a year for the community to physically recover from the tornado's impacts.
However, Crutchfield said this does not have to be the case for a person's mental health.
"We really need to take ourselves seriously and we owe it to ourselves to say, 'Hey, what I'm feeling right now is valid and what I am going through is a real experience and I need some help,'" said Crutchfield.
Mental health resources are available across the Hampton Roads area for those struggling with their mental health.