Why did I freeze during an emergency?
During an emergency, we need to remember that our reactions were normal; it is the situation that was not normal.
‘our higher level thinking skills, our ability to… make a good decision, or problem solve or really think through a dilemma…. are essentially offline in the midst of a stress response.’
Jana Pressley, PsyD, 2023, Traumatic Stress Studies Certificate Program
In traumatic situations, we can become ‘deskilled’; even if we are a knowledgeable First Aider, we might not be able to recall that knowledge under pressure.
Benefits of learning First Aid
People who actively do something to deal with disaster … utilize their stress hormones for their proper purpose and are therefore at much lower risk of becoming traumatized. Feeling helpless and immobilized … keeps people from utilizing their stress hormones [which] now keep fueling inappropriate fight/flight and freeze responses
The Body Keeps the Score | Bessel Van Der Kolk
How can I manage the freeze response during future emergencies?