Tray

Yes the shallow ones can feel really violent....we were very angry & weary after the Sept & Feb ones, we resorted to swearing at every after shock we felt!...a bit of a release. Your'e right though, the sleep deprivation is no joke...hope you have a quieter weekend

BEVS

Do you really mean this ?

Do you really?

Kija

My heart goes out to everyone experiencing aftershocks, we had one biggish 6.2 one many years ago and it's a terrible feeling when the ground shakes under you like that, one of the scariest experiences I've ever had (and I've had quite a few!). The whole you can't control what's going on aspect of it is horrendous.

Persephone

Charismatic, I'd rather a 6.40 alarm call than a 3am one and some of us have to get up for work even on Fridays
Last night was the first night since Monday that I felt I'd slept for longer than 2 hours at a time. I had to get up for work and it woke me up just before the alarm went off, for once an aftershock worked with my life!

I don't do sleep deprivation very well, add in stress at work and I've not had a good week Of course Mr S is away at the moment - it was almost guaranteed there'd be a big quake, don't think he's been here for anything bigger than a 4.5...

Persephone

Thanks Kija
I was laughing the other day about how excited I was when I felt my first earthquake here in NZ-it was a piddly 4 or something minor - how little did I ever imagine this happening. Now I hope I never feel another one ever again, we've had over 7,000 since Sept, that's more than enough for one person

Kija

7000!!!! Can't even begin to imagine what that's like!!! I hope it stops, that's more than anyone should have to go through. There's a lot to be said about the upbeat attitude and resilience of those who are going through something like this, my hat goes off to you

Out of curiosity, how do pets react to the aftershocks? It must be very traumatic for them too

Persephone

We don't feel all of them- hell I'd be a complete sleep deprived zombie by now! I don't feel anything under about 3.7 and it also depends on which faultline it comes from as to how apparent it is.

As to pets, I've found that most people say their pets do get anxious with the quakes, they tend to hide away or become more clingy. I've had to put some of them on anti anxiety medication as a temporary measure. We have had more dogs brought in after being found wandering the streets after running away and lots of people have reported that their cats ran off and went missing for a few days after the bigger quakes. We are really seeing the benefits to having animals microchipped down here-it is so easy to reunite them with their owners And after the NZVA and SPCA provided free microchips post Feb quake and the publicity associated with this we have got a lot more cats chipped, dogs are required to be chipped and registered anyway

Charismatic

I don’t spend too much time thinking about what could have been or might one day be. We can be our own biggest enemies, blowing problems out of proportion and imagining scenarios that may never happen. Of course we are afraid when it happens and it’s always so unexpected but living in fear is no life at all really, we have to move on each time and dwelling on past events doesn’t change them.

You probably won’t think twice about the risks involved in getting into a car or living in a country crisscrossed with active fault lines and volcanoes. You accept the risks as part of the Nu Zillund package, so have we .

Persephone

What you say is correct however it takes people different amounts of time to reach the 'not living in fear' stage. Some will not be that affected like you, others will be more anxious. There is no right and wrong here. I was quite pessimistic for a couple of weeks after the Feb quake, I was not like this after the Sept quake. It wore off and I went back to my usual 'que sera, sera' attitude. The more big quakes we have and the more damage is done the more fearful people will be.
People's everyday risk assessments are rarely rational or based on fact, emotion plays a big part in what scares people [you included]

kiwigirlinalain

My sister's wee Jack Russell was home alone in her house when the February 22 quake hit, she took off and was lost for 3 days. The house has since been red stickered. Wee Billie was returned to us by a lovely guy who picked her up and took her to work with him until he was able to reach us. Whilst I was home in Christchurch post quake she came to live with my Dad and I and each time there was an aftershock she would shoot behind a chair or behind a curtain. She slept in the bed with me the whole time I was home, under the covers at the end of the bed by my feet. Poor wee soul. She took off again last week when the big one hit and was gone for 48 hours but fortunately has now been returned to my Dad. I think we under estimate how traumatised animals can be in this situation. I so miss her, we became such close friends. I walked her on the beach at South Brighton every day I was there. Now back in the desert and the temperatures are late 40's early 50's so no walking and certainly not the right environment for a pet!

kiwigirlinalain

Agree! I was not there for the February 22 quake but I was there for 3 months after and the shocks did my head in. I didn't get a complete nights sleep the whole time I was home. Often you would wake but were not aware of why you had woken until you checked geonet in the morning and realised there had been numerous shakes throughout the night. The hardest part for all is the uncertainty of what is still to come and the inability to get on and rebuild. My heart is with you all in Christchurch x

Charismatic

What do you mean even me?

In truth I’ve never found much comfort in the things normal people find comfort in, people always seem insincere to me when they do try to comfort and reassure each other. Of course people often have good intentions but find it difficult to articulate the way they really feel in words or actions.

That is one of the most flawed aspects of human relationships, we often love each other far more than we care to admit and perhaps one day we will evolve a better way to describe the collective empathy we feel for one another even if we don’t know a person directly. There are wedges between groups of humans; my hope is that one day the simple act of being human will transcend the artificial boundaries and we can arrive at a mutual understanding. In the end the commonalities that bind us are much greater than the differences that separate us and we are destined to be a global society. [/ramble]

Am Loolah

Awwww ... ... I find that quite sad. Mainly because I can relate to what you're saying, my family was very unemotional and non demonstrative, something I have tried not to continue with my own kids. They are a work in progress.

Having said that I don't think I could be one of the stoic ones in ChCh, and I think I would have had to move on by now, if it were that simple, which it usually isn't.

So I stand by what I've said before, my thoughts and heart is with all of you suffering down there, especially you Charismatic, whether you like it or not!

Tray

Out of curiosity, how do pets react to the aftershocks? It must be very traumatic for them too [/QUOTE]

Sparky, our Jack Russell/boarder cross shook after every aftershock, he constantly shivered and was very clingy. When the big Sept & Feb ones hit us he ran around the house barking our lovely dog sitters reported stray dogs everywhere in Sumner...luckily they knew most of them so could take them in & re-unite some with their owners

Persephone

That one felt bigger than last weeks 6.3. Anyone else think so? Looks like we're in for another sleepless night. Had 4 or 5 since that as well.
Can't be arsed to pick up everything tonight I've had enough