When we are faced with a crisis situation, we each respond in our own particular way. Some of us gather information so we can then take action, others go immediately into overwhelm, some of us rush around making sure everyone else is fine, some of us lash out.
Knowing how you respond in a crisis can be the first step toward making decisions and choices in a crisis that minimise your stress, anxiety and/or trauma.
See my previous post What’s your crisis response to learn more about crisis responses.
When we are in crisis situations:
feelings of shock, sadness, overwhelm, fear, anger, wobbliness, etc. are normal reactions
our responses are influenced by our past and our present
other issues or problems that we already have can feel magnified
What to do:
Take time to care for yourself
Recognise, name and acknowledge your feelings (see previous post: How are you feeling: emotions)
Reach out if you need help
Prioritise your time so the crisis does not take over your life and you can find time think and feel and process
Consider what helped and did not help you in previous stressful situations
Accept that sometimes you just need a break
Practice mindfulness
Look after your physical health
Process your feelings
Be patient and forgiving with yourself
Reach out and seek help if you feel you are not coping with your crisis or if you remain in crisis mode for prolonged periods of time.