Mental Preparedness

We have had discussions on various physical preparations, equipment preparations etc. An area that I see just as important is how well are we /you prepared mentally, and what can you do to improve? Can you think on your feet ? I am specifically talking about an unexpected emergency event, be it a natural, or man made event.
Our members that live way out yonder have found coping mechanisms for their daily struggles. Our LEO and Emergency Services members (past and present) obviously deal with or have dealt with the chaos of emergency situations on an almost daily basis. Military members are taught drills or have experienced the nightmare of combat.
For an inexperienced person, possibly your significant other, or older child, what would you suggest to give them a “taste” of functioning under stress?
My first thought would be volunteering with your local Fire Department and or Emergency Medical Service (Rescue, First Aid, Ambulance etc). My reasoning is, that they would learn team work, potentially valuable skills, and possibly most importantly confidence under stress (before they have to do it for real with their family). I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Good post Pal. This is something that my wife and I have undertaken recently. Tomorrow morning is our final CERT class, with our county wide drill two weeks later. Quite honestly, there was not too much new information in the class for me. Some though, and refreshers are always a good idea. For my wife however, it was an eye opener. They do introduce you to valuable skills in the course. I can really see a maturation of some of my classmates. We plan on continuing our education with additional classes and seminars.

Actually I don't really know and that's kinda scary. As a parent I want to do my best to prepare my children for the world, but for this I don't know. I will encourage them to join the Military for some of the reasons you stated, but beyond that I'm not sure.

That's a good thread. Maybe setting up a situation where they experience what it is like to be lost? That tends to bring up feelings of panic, but not sure how you'd set up a situation where the person really does feel lost but isn't.
Joining a search and rescue group would be good.

One thing that I've been wondering about is how to prepare for an emergency situation where you have received some sort of injury that doesn't let you think clearly (hypothermia, blow to the head, low blood sugar, severe loss of blood etc). When you're on your own and dependent on your wits, you'll have a real problem. Maybe a written down checklist on what to do would help...I don't know.

My main thought was to put them under stress and have them making decisions. Some people freeze, some go ballistic, and most learn from it and "the next time" they usually cope better. I always tried to get my new troops into a stress training scenario to allow them to fail and then show them what they may have done differently, and the next time around almost all showed improvement and time permitting keppt doing it. The idea being make mistakes when no one would get hurt.
I like the way Crash is going about it, exposing spouse in an exercise type situation, is a good introduction to the chaos.

The most eye opening part of the class for those with no prior training was Disaster Triage. At the drills they get pretty involved with their moulage kits. Some of us with prior training have already been tapped to be the first round of victims.

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Originally Posted by crashdive123

The most eye opening part of the class for those with no prior training was Disaster Triage. At the drills they get pretty involved with their moulage kits. Some of us with prior training have already been tapped to be the first round of victims.

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That moulage can be very realistic, and the "acting of the victims" does a great job for the inexperienced folks.

I turly think that it depends on the person that you want to learn good mental strenght and how far you are willing to go to "help" them learn
for example if you have a willing to learn type of person than it will be easy for you to help them all you need is ideas as it has been said already Vouluntering FD. search and rescue. a little "trip" w/ some preplanned disasters. the main thing is is expeireance. you have to have an expiereance.
its vital.
noe onthe other hand like we have pepole in are lives who we wished had this but are unwillg to try to have any expierances they need alittle more help. your spouse you friend your child.
and now its up to you to see how willing you are to " help" them some may be easyier than others for exmp. my mom helped my dad by booking a family vaction for us to the Cumberland islands and from that expeiriance he was made a little more willing to go Camping and then she introduced camping more regularly and conviently "forgot" little things and that went on and has helped him to have mental strenght a little more each time.
now if its a child you probably have to be a little more stronger misson trips w/ churchs are good at preparing young minds for hardship. if you dont like churches or you cant get the child to go along stick him in the bush and wacth from a distance- a bit of Jamaican child rearing techniques- harsh but belive me it works just try to give them some knowlage b4 hand
Me personaly i have had to live in belize to learn to go thru hardship b/c thats about all they have down here to offer [ unless your a tourist]
I have my wife who is not willing to learn the type of mental strenght need for the bush and i have faild as a husband b.c i cant take my own advice and have the intestinal fortitude to face her and say "Honey we are going camping"

Each family is different and each situation will not be the same but its our responsibility to take care of the ones we love in every aspect that we possibly can

just some thoughts

A couple of other threads on the subject.

http://www.wilderness-survival.net/f...l+preparedness

http://www.wilderness-survival.net/f...l+preparedness

I think the make up of the person is the primary driver here and I don't know that any of us can alter who or what we are. Some folks are just laid back and are able to think through and/or deal with anything that comes their way. Others loose control of just about everything including bodily functions. I don't know how you change that or even if you can. Those of you that have been in the military, particularly in combat, probably understand this better than anyone. All of you go through tons of training and when push comes to shove some perform well and others can't perform. It's just part of who we are.

Having said that, I'm been granted the ability to not panic. I've not been in combat but I have had one or two hair raising moments and I was pretty calm and able to think through what I needed to do. My wife is an RN and has about the same makeup. It takes a lot to rattle her.

I think everything you listed is good stuff and there are no doubt real time benefits from the training. Both in terms of skills learned and unit cohesion. I'm not certain it impacts who you are, though. And I don't know of anything that will let you learn who you are except the real thing.

I look forward to hearing YOUR thoughts.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Rick

A couple of other threads on the subject.

http://www.wilderness-survival.net/f...l+preparedness

http://www.wilderness-survival.net/f...l+preparedness

I think the make up of the person is the primary driver here and I don't know that any of us can alter who or what we are. Some folks are just laid back and are able to think through and/or deal with anything that comes their way. Others loose control of just about everything including bodily functions. I don't know how you change that or even if you can. Those of you that have been in the military, particularly in combat, probably understand this better than anyone. All of you go through tons of training and when push comes to shove some perform well and others can't perform. It's just part of who we are.

Having said that, I'm been granted the ability to not panic. I've not been in combat but I have had one or two hair raising moments and I was pretty calm and able to think through what I needed to do. My wife is an RN and has about the same makeup. It takes a lot to rattle her.

I think everything you listed is good stuff and there are no doubt real time benefits from the training. Both in terms of skills learned and unit cohesion. I'm not certain it impacts who you are, though. And I don't know of anything that will let you learn who you are except the real thing.

I look forward to hearing YOUR thoughts.

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I pretty much agree with you, training and experience will not always change a person. I think what I am trying to say is with experience that includes stress, at accident scenes for example, a person would get an idea how they will react, maybe good or bad, but they feel the sensation. That "mind shift" (I think that is a good way to express it) that a person goes through when they are reacting to a scary, unexpected or dangerous situation. By doing it several times, repeatedly or however often, maybe we can cut the learning curve down a little.
As far as training goes, I really do think it does have an impact on who you are. I have seen timid young men and women become more confident in their general demeanor because they have mastered their training. what this does is makes them much less hesitant to take action than they were before. And conversely I have seen cocky men and women crushed by their inability to master their training.

All good points. Familiarity also breeds confidence it would seem. Muscle memory is probably at play as well taking some of the emotion out of it. I like it. Good post.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Rick

All good points. Familiarity also breeds confidence it would seem. Muscle memory is probably at play as well taking some of the emotion out of it. I like it. Good post.

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IMHO, confidence (not arrogance) is a very valuable thing to have. Makes you willing to try, as opposed to giving up.

Hey Crash,
During your CERT class did they speak to the topic of your own personal survival and survival kits? Or did they just discuss how to help others after an emergency? The reason I ask is CORE, the Okland version of CERT appears to be looking at only having spare bodies to help emergency Services and they will take who ever survives but not try to increase the survival rate.

One of the things that was really emphasized was personal safety. Not so much a focus on personal survival kits - although we did discuss it. The rationale is to not compound the problem by becoming a victim - which did branch off into personal survival and preparedness. Mexico City and Oklahoma City were examples that were given - Mexico City 100 would be rescuers were killed, and OK City 1 that ignored the warnings of other rescuers.

Mental preparedness is #1 in my traing system which is A.S.K (Attitude, Skills Kit).
Those of you who I sent my handout to have seen this in there.

Yes, I guess the organization and implementation of "boot camp" in the military, or things like "High Performance Organization Training" in the business world put the trainee in the situation where they are tired, hungry (or other physical and mental stressors), barraged with conflicting information where they have to do a task or make a decision, then learning from the decision they made so they can do it better the next time is not a bad model for "learning by doing" and getting the attitudes right. Getting mental focus is what all of this enhanced performance is all about, I guess. My Football Coach used to call it "getting your head in the game".

I'd also like to add something to mental preparedness and that's physical.
Not in the sense that most think of which is important.
I am talking about a "third leg of a three-legged stool" if you will.
Which is keeping all your check-ups current, getting rid of that spare tire, no smoking, moderate drinking and taking care of your choppers.
No amount of mental fortitude, gear and survival skills are going to help you
if you don't take care of your health starting now.
I know it's a boooooring topic and I am not telling you anything you don't already know whether you practice it or not.
It's just worth thinking about it in this context.

I couldn't agree more, Benesse. (well, except for the spare tire thing). Proper, ongoing hygiene and understanding your health numbers (cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL, LDL, Blood Pressure, etc) as well as good dental care are important precursors to survival. If you go into a "situation" in bad shape, your odds of coming out of it go down markedly.

I agreewith all. One little trick I use when stuff is going into the crapper is to imaine this song, has always brought me out of a funk:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5IIXeR5OUI

i often place myself in situations like bad weather, extreem cold, excessive heat, physical strain and others to test my mental preparedness for the worst...
when done in a controled enviroment, you (I) can back out and change tactics to suit the problem. by doing so we can remedy ourselves to know what to do and how to cope with the mental rigors. personal safty is also understood.
throw in some "uncontroled" exp. and the problem of mental preparedness is more conditioned.
like crash implied, talking about it isnt enough, a person has to condition themselves.. the experiences are where the preparedness comes from

I just saw this on the Discovery Channel and thought it would be useful

http://dsc.discovery.com/survival/ho....htmlPreparing Yourself


.Your mission as a person in a survival situation is to stay alive. As you can see, you are going to experience an assortment of thoughts and emotions. These can work for you, or they can work to your downfall. Fear, anxiety, anger, frustration, guilt, depression and loneliness are all possible reactions to the many stresses common to survival. These reactions, when controlled in a healthy way, help to increase a person's likelihood of surviving. They prompt the survivor to pay more attention in training, to fight back when scared, to take actions that ensure sustenance and security, to keep faith with his companions and to strive against large odds. When the survivor cannot control these reactions in a healthy way, they can bring him to a standstill. Instead of rallying his internal resources, the person listens to his internal fears. This individual experiences psychological defeat long before he physically succumbs. Remember, survival is natural to everyone; being unexpectedly thrust into the life and death struggle of survival is not. Don't be afraid of your "natural reactions to this unnatural situation." Prepare yourself to rule over these reactions so they serve your ultimate interest — staying alive.

It involves preparation to ensure that your reactions in a survival setting are productive, not destructive. The challenge of survival has produced countless examples of heroism, courage and self-sacrifice. These are the qualities it can bring out in you if you have prepared yourself. Below are a few tips to help prepare yourself psychologically for survival. Through studying this manual and attending survival training you can develop the survival attitude.

Know Yourself
Through training, family and friends, take the time to discover who you are on the inside. Strengthen your stronger qualities and develop the areas that you know are necessary to survive.

Anticipate Fears
Don't pretend that you will have no fears. Begin thinking about what would frighten you the most if forced to survive alone. Train in those areas of concern to you. The goal is not to eliminate the fear, but to build confidence in your ability to function despite your fears.

Be Realistic
Don't be afraid to make an honest appraisal of situations. See circumstances as they are, not as you want them to be. Keep your hopes and expectations within the estimate of the situation. When you go into a survival setting with unrealistic expectations, you may be laying the groundwork for bitter disappointment. Follow the adage, "Hope for the best, prepare for the worst." It is much easier to adjust to pleasant surprises about one's unexpected good fortunes than to be upset by one's unexpected harsh circumstances.

Adopt a Positive Attitude
Learn to see the potential good in everything. Looking for the good not only boosts morale, it also is excellent for exercising your imagination and creativity.

Remind Yourself What Is at Stake
Remember, failure to prepare yourself psychologically to cope with survival leads to reactions such as depression, carelessness, inattention, loss of confidence, poor decision-making and giving up before the body gives in. At stake is your life and the lives of others who are depending on you to do your share.

Train
Through training and life experiences, begin today to prepare yourself to cope with the rigors of survival. Demonstrating your skills in training will give you the confidence to call upon them should the need arise. Remember, the more realistic the training, the less overwhelming an actual survival setting will be.

Learn Stress Management Techniques
People under stress have a potential to panic if they are not well-trained and not prepared psychologically to face whatever the circumstances may be. While we often cannot control the survival circumstances in which we find ourselves, it is within our ability to control our response to those circumstances. Learning stress management techniques can enhance significantly your capability to remain calm and focused as you work to keep yourself and others alive. A few good techniques to develop include relaxation skills, time management skills, assertiveness skills and cognitive restructuring skills (the ability to control how you view a situation).

Remember, "the will to survive" can also be considered to be "the refusal to give up."

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wildWoman

Maybe setting up a situation where they experience what it is like to be lost?

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We could just ask 2D2K.... Ken says he's alway's that way:innocent:

Yesterday,I had to help the lump tend to brush fires on a friends property,but had to leave him alone while I picked up the daughter and dropped her off at work (she currently does not have a car),and just after leaving her,I get a text from him,that his blood sugar is dropping,can I bring him some peanut butter?

I keep soe inmy pack I keep in my truck,because my sugar drops from time to time,and the peanut butter works very well to stabilize sugar levels,if you get it in time,buthe was twenty five minutes away in another county,and the friends had had to leave so no help there.I made it there in 12 minutes,al the way there,I made mental notes of the steps I would take to minimize time elapse getting to where he was and get his sugar back up.My friend was back,and waiting on me when I made it to their property,she asked questions as I jumped out and ran to the back and grabbed my pack,pulled cookies,mints,and a couple of cokes out of my truck and stuffed them ito the pack,and headed in his direction.

After it was over,and he was feeling better,she said I was like a robot when I got out of the truck,and was impressed when I told her that all the way there I had mentally pictured where everthing was in my truck I might need,and had mapped out what order to grab them to minimize time.

On the way,I hit a squirrel,sorry Ken,it was an accident r.i.p mr squirrel.And a dog.and while running down the hill to where the lump was,I lost the sole off my hiking boot....it wasn't even loose up to that point.

The lump is diabetic,but he has lost over 96 pounds over the past year,and it is sending his sugar in the opposite direction ,he has switched from 4 insulin shots per day,to 1 pill per day,and it seems that that is still too much.Gonna have to get him some glucose pills to carry in his lunch box,along with peanutbutter .

THats a good example of how some people react. Focusing on the problem, and reacting. Kind of rough on the wildlife though :)

I try to use situations that come up to make people think.
Saturday night the power went out while he was making a pizza for dinner. And my husband who gets wound up easliy went into "must have electricity" mode. His electrician friend has been promising for a year to install a switch for the generator but that hasn't happened. Long story short. DH was all worked up and blew up the kitchen TV. I got him to stop with the breaker box and told him I could finish dinner in the wood stove.

As he sat there he said "Some Survivalist I am. Five minutes without electricity and I fell apart. LOL!" So we had a good discussion about it. Part of his issue was the pizza in the oven. I asked him if he had even considered that he could cook it in the wood stove. It was a good opportunity to discuss a real situation where maybe the power would never be back on.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pal334

...... Kind of rough on the wildlife though :)

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It's kind of what she does.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by trax

It's kind of what she does.

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I amconvinced that I won't mess with her :)

If you haven't been a situation when TSHTF you can try and prepare for it but if you ain't so scared you want to wet your pants or run just anywhere you haven't been there. Maybe you can train & prepare for a long time but I wouldn't try to perdict your actions nor would I perdict mine under a situation that I've been under before. Even working at 50 I could climb a high pole several times with no problem then go back, look at it and be afraid altho I had been up it several times that day. Comes down to same situation, different time, different reaction and no guarantee of how you will react.

"It's mind over matter. I don't mind and you don't matter!"

SFC Horace McDowell; Rest-in-Peace, Sergeant Airborne!

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