Soldiers: "We all thought we were safe"

KILLEEN, Texas (KXAN) - Soldiers are still shocked at the mass shootings on Ft. Hood on Thursday. Many military post officials are preparing to help soldiers and their families cope.

"I think most of us are really doing OK," said Captain Nathan Sammons. "We're coming together to support each other and the families directly impacted."

Luckily, there are many resources on the post to help people cope both physically and mentally. The American Red Cross organized a volunteer force and gathered information to see how they could best support the community affected by the tragedy. The following tips were given to those who were dealing with the trauma:

• Some of us are able to cope by using tools like getting plenty of rest, exercising, eating regularly and ensuring that our daily routines are kept.
• Others may become hyper vigilant, meaning that they are more susceptible to tuning in on strange or unusual noises. At that point, that person should step back and assess their ability to cope.
• Parents are often concerned about addressing this situation with children. Dorothy says that she has found children tend to cope well and often find the positive side in the situation, such as being released early from school. Other times children follow the lead of adults close to them, therefore it is important to remain calm and work through feelings on an individual basis even enlisting the help of professionals as needed.
• In the days following the event, people will recover at a different pace. We encourage families and friends to support one another and express concern to those who are having a difficult time recovering.

However, the post, understandably, still feels on edge. Not only was the post stressed about the shooting, but that feeling was coupled with the upcoming deployment to Iraq.

"People here are tense," said SPC. Refugio Figueroa, 22. "They think they let their guard down, thinking they are on a military post, everything should be safe and then this comes up. People are worried something like this can pop up again."

He has gone to Iraq once already, and expects to go again soon. He recalled the events for KXAN Austin News.

"Knowing something like this can happen on a military post is kind of nerve-racking," said SPC Figueroa. "I [saw] people running around in vests [very fast] and uncoordinated, so I knew something was wrong. I contacted [someone] and he told me what happened. What's when I helped out, directing traffic. This situation right here, there's people that kind of lost trust in the medical field known another medical officer did something like this...but it's one bad apple. It doesn't mean all of the apples are bad so I am sure there are still good psychiatrists and other medical people out there so I still will keep using them."

General George W. Casey Jr. commented in an afternoon press conference on Friday that soldiers are obviously stunned, but are doing well considering.

"I am very proud," said Gen. Casey. "We take care of our own. We will grieve with the families and we will maintain the focus of our missions throughout the world. We are moving forward on the programs that are going to help our soldiers and family members to deal with the problems ahead."

During the press conference, officials stressed that the army has care providers that should help soldiers during this time of need.

Gen. Casey stressed this tragedy took them all by surprise.

"As we said, this is a tough one," said Gen. Casey. "It is inside and it is a kick in the gut. There's no doubt about it."