A guest Blog by- Alex Firmin, in > Professional Development associate director of tutors, about mastering panic mode with tips for people to use.
In my latest blog, I’ve focused on the responses needed for you to perform effectively and strategically during challenging times or when panic mode kicks in.
In June 2007 I was stuck in the back of a Warrior armoured vehicle (imagine the back half of a tank on the caterpillar tracks), sweltering in the oppressive heat, and chatting to my colleagues as we rolled into the town of Sangin, Afghanistan.
Sudden gunfire, and a loud explosion.
Um momento foi uma conversa amigável, o próximo caos. Lembro -me do meu coração martelando, e minha visão se estreitou e vacilante. Não consegui desfazer meu capacete, pois meus dedos pararam de funcionar. E quando eu consegui, ele caiu no chão e fiquei preso embaixo do meu lugar. Isso nunca acontece nos filmes. Nesse ponto, eu não estava em estado para me administrar, muito menos minha equipe. Que havia sido disparado e derrubado. Foi aqui que a memória do meu treinamento entrou em ação. Comecei a respirar e comecei a pensar,
Helmet freed, I got out of the vehicle to go and help rescue the guys in the Warrior behind. Which had been rocketed and knocked off it tracks. It was here that memory of my training kicked in. I started to breathe and began to think, O que eu sei sobre essa situação? O que eu tenho que fazer a seguir? Era difícil manter a porta dos fundos aberta, pois estávamos sob ataque e eu continuava me dizendo para respirar e pensar. Consegui me manter fora da linha de tiro e gritar orientação para meus colegas. A resposta da luta, fuga e congelamento de 'pânico' inunda o corpo com adrenalina e se concentra na ameaça imediata à nossa frente. Especialmente se outros dependem do que fazemos no momento. Podemos nos tornar um passivo. Isso ativa o córtex frontal e nossos processos de pensamento mais evoluídos, permitindo-nos funcionar e assumir a responsabilidade pelo que está acontecendo ao nosso redor. Tudo isso reflete, respostas naturais a situações estressantes. Etapas:
I made myself get up onto my feet and jumped out the back so we could pull wounded friends into a confined space. It was difficult to keep the back door open, as we were under attack and I kept telling myself to breathe and think.
I began to orientate myself back to the situation and work out where the enemy were positioned. I was able to keep myself out of the firing line, and shout guidance to my colleagues.
Reflecting, it seems evident that the primitive part of my brain kicked in that day and rendered me ineffective for a few moments. The fight, flight and freeze ‘panic’ response floods the body with adrenaline and focuses on the immediate threat in front of us.
In this state of mind, we lose perspective and our decision-making ability becomes extremely poor; especially if others are depending upon what we do in the moment. We can become a liability.
This is the time to draw a deep breath, pay attention to your inner-processes, and put yourself in a position to think. This activates the frontal cortex and our more evolved thought processes kick in, enabling us to function and take responsibility for what is going on around us.
Some reactions to the Coronavirus are clearly reflecting the panic response, panic buying, and knee-jerk business choices. All of which reflect, natural responses to stressful situations.
However, decisions made in panic are almost always regretted, and only when we have drawn a breath, orientated ourselves to the situation, and activated our frontal cortex are we in a position to make sound calls, and even come out of the situation in a better position than before it began.
Mastering the panic response requires us to take the following steps:
- Preste atenção aos seus próprios processos mentais; Você está pensando de forma clara e racional, ou a emoção está impulsionando seu processo de pensamento? Nenhuma ação pode ser melhor do que uma resposta em pânico.
- Stop for a moment, take yourself away from the problem, and draw breath (if you’re old enough to remember; have a Hamlet moment). No action may be better than a panicky response.
- Oriente -se para a situação. Reúna todas as informações que puder, identifique seus objetivos e aja estrategicamente.
If you would like to learn more about how we can help you lead through challenging times, email us at [email protected]. Trabalharemos com você para encontrar o curso de aprendizado certo para suas necessidades de treinamento específicas.
