(Written by Fred Fuges, FEI Account Manager)

Almost by definition, trauma is produced by an “out of order” event that challenges our resilience. It invites vivid and emotional recall of past difficulties and stirs up intrusive anxiety about the future. First responders and crisis managers are challenged by confrontation with immediate options and decision-making that has consequences of life versus death and harm versus safety. Immediate, adrenaline-ridden action (“fight or flight”) or intentional, nail-bitten waiting (“freeze”) behaviors may be called for.

Training and experience guide first responders in picking the best—though not necessarily the perfect—choice minute by minute. Trained crisis managers are in a similar situation, having planned and practiced scenarios but continuing to expect the unexpected. Of course, the unsuspecting manager or volunteer responder has fewer tools to guide them through what is to them a random event. The ideal scenario for people in these positions and circumstances is to focus on the immediate issue calmly and logically.

Oddly enough, one of the tools available to equip first responders before and after critical incidents does not involve planning or training, but rather developing a practice of mindfulness: sustained awareness of their experience moment by moment.

A research psychologist associated with the University of Miami, Dr. Amishi Jha, studied the impact of mindfulness exercises on military members about to be deployed, finding that mindfulness improved their capacity to sustain focus on the tasks at hand. Those who did not practice mindfulness were more easily distracted by non-task thinking. Jha’s research, which has also included mindfulness for teachers, continues with the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department. Her findings indicate that the full impact of mindfulness may require over two months of daily practice.

Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn is one of the most prominent practitioners in the field and has developed an approach called Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), which has been applied in medical and other settings.  Mindfulness practice is a kind of meditative experience that can be guided or self-initiated. It encourages allowing attention on what is happening at the moment—in the “now”—in a person’s mind and body. There is a focus on observing one’s own breathing. A key part of the process includes “letting go” of thoughts from the past or about the future that intrude into awareness, which Kabat-Zinn compares to observing bubbles at the bottom of a glass of carbonated water traveling upward and popping in the air. After only 10 to 15 minutes, the outcome can be a sense of calm and alertness.

If you are a first responder, crisis manager or just a person who has been impacted by trauma, consider starting daily mindfulness practice and using MBSR when you are experiencing stress. Your EAP is available to assist in exploring resources and taking the first step toward making mindfulness a part of your life.

Another valuable resource is Kabat-Zinn’s book, Full Catastrophe Living (Revised Edition): Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness. There is also “Mindfulness Meditation – Quick 15 Minute Stress-Relief Version,” a video providing a guided mindfulness exercise that will give you an idea of what mindfulness involves.

A final, fun suggestion is to create a NOW watch:

  1. Find an adhesive label and cut it to match the face of your wristwatch. Write the word “NOW on the label.
  2. Stick it on the face of your watch.
  3. Wear it that way for a day. 
  4. Every time you check the time, it will be “NOW.”
  5. You may find it focuses your attention in a mindful way on the immediate moment and improves your decision-making.