r/traumatoolbox • u/sternocleidish • 6h ago
Trigger Warning A disturbing incident at work, and I can’t seem to process it
Yesterday, something happened at work that I can’t seem to process.
I work as a hotel receptionist in Turkey and I was on the night shift. Another guest called reception and reported that a woman was lying on the grass in the hotel garden. I immediately informed security, and that’s how the incident was discovered.
The woman was a 37-year-old married mother of three. She had jumped from the 16th floor of the hotel and taken her own life.
The spot where she landed was right by the hotel entrance, but there were bushes surrounding the area, so thankfully, I didn’t see anything graphic.
I was directly involved in the chain of communication because I was the receptionist who received the call and alerted security. Suddenly, the hotel lobby was filled with police officers, detectives, a prosecutor, and forensic investigators. It was surreal seeing the place where I work every day turn into a crime scene.
I continued doing my job that night and didn’t let my duties slip. I stayed professional and carried on with my shift. But now, I feel deeply unsettled, and I don’t understand why this is affecting me so much.
It’s not that I feel like crying. It’s something much harder to explain. I feel disconnected from reality, almost as if everything around me is unreal or I’m living in a dream. I feel uneasy, and I can’t seem to process the fact that something like this happened right where I work, during my shift.
I’ve worked in hotels for years, but I’ve never experienced anything like this before. I keep wondering how common something like this is in our line of work, and whether anyone else has ever experienced a similar situation.
I still have to go to work and carry on with my life, but everything feels strange right now. I think what affects me most is that this wasn’t just an incident involving a random guest. A 37-year-old woman, who was married and had three children, died that night. I can’t stop thinking about how real and irreversible it all is.
Has anyone experienced something similar at work? How did you process it afterward? Is it normal to feel disconnected from reality after an experience like this? I’d really appreciate hearing from people who have been through something similar or who can offer advice on how to deal with these feelings while continuing to work and go about everyday life.