Silences: helping elderly Holocaust victims deal with the past

Persons who have faced severe crises such as the Holocaust in Nazi Germany confront painful memories, guilt, and the perceived irrationality of their own survival, which represses thoughts and memories. There is no language to share the dark and difficult years of the past. Silence is their only voice of expression. In later life, when friends are gone, the need to share with others becomes urgent; to bear witness is vital. Helping persons share these experiences is no easy task. To engage the elderly with reminiscences, memory, bereavement, and the working through of guilt provide unusual challenges for the helping professions. Significant family events are also important opportunities for sharing the past. It is the children and grandchildren's desire to know that also prompts the sharing of past horrors and future hopes. They often enable the deepest silences to be shared and it is the elderly that often welcome this opportunity. Being sensitive to these integenerational dynamics are important in helping elderly Holocaust victims deal with their past.