PARENTS, relatives and friends of 19 children and two teachers are mourning following their deaths at the hands of a young gunman in Uvalde, Texas in the US.

Armed with high-powered weapons and wearing body armour, the 18-year-old entered an elementary school in this largely Hispanic community and went on a killing rampage, after first shooting his grandmother with whom he lived.

This horrific shooting took place just two weeks after a young man shot and killed 11 African-Americans grocery shopping in Buffalo, New York.

What makes this act so heart-rending is that this is the second biggest mass shooting at a school in the United States, the deadliest shooting in Texas’ history and one of several such perpetrated nationwide.

As one television commentator said, instead of watching school buses taking these young second, third and fourth graders to their homes, this was a grisly scene of a fleet of hearses bearing their bodies away.

While the entire nation and people worldwide grieved, my heart went out to the parents of these children, for as US President, Joe Biden said, “losing a child is like having a piece of your heart ripped out.”

And the many scenes of parents holding their heads, weeping uncontrollably while trying to come to terms with their loss, was indeed moving and tear-jerking.

Once more outrage is sweeping the country about the easy availability of guns, the failure of lawmakers to enact appropriate legislation to prevent this and the power of the National Rifle Association (NRA), which is largely responsible for the quantity of weapons on the streets.

However, the argument is also being made that politicians and members of the public seem to be becoming increasingly immune to these tragedies, as after the candlelight vigils and tributes to the dead, little is done to bring about significant change.

This argument is further supported by the simple fact that those states with stricter gun laws have fewer gun crimes and internationally, where there are stringent controls, mass shootings and indeed shootings of any kind are rare.

Meanwhile so many are left to mourn the loss of a child, a relative, a friend and to cope with the trauma associated with this, like the families of the two teachers who apparently wrapped themselves around the bodies of their pupils in an effort to protect them.

These two women were parents themselves and have left children and husbands behind trying to cope with their sudden death and school children across the country are once more faced with spectre of violence in the one place other than their homes where they are supposed to be safe.

In talking about the sudden death of a loved one, the Centre for Treatment of Anxiety and Mood Disorders (CTAMD) said this: “People form countless relationships throughout their lives – with family members, friends, coworkers and neighbours. We have the deepest connections with the people we love – these relationships help make us who we are. They contribute to our sense of identity and have the power to transform us, for good or bad. Because of this the death of a loved one can create numerous psychological issues, including PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), particularly if the loss was tragic and unexpected.”

So it goes without saying that the grief-stricken, particularly parents, relatives and witnesses to this and other such shootings are highly and likely to suffer from PTSD and other psychological disorders.

The Discover Magazine likens the traumatic loss of a loved one to experiencing a brain injury and Neurologist, Lisa Shulman, adds to this saying, “The problem isn’t sorrow; it’s a fog of confusion, disorientation and delusions of magical thinking…the emotional trauma of loss results in serious changes in the brain function that endure.”

Anyone who has endured the loss of a loved one can no doubt identify this and we can all direct our thoughts and prayers to the families of these l9 children and two teachers who have suffered the greatest loss of all.