What are the key indicators of stress during a critical incident?

Never suppress these natural body reactions after a critical incident: - Shaking / tremoring: Your body is trying to close the loop of the fight-or-flight-or-freeze response that was triggered to help you survive. Allow your body to shake it out, and to feel that relief. - Crying / sobbing: Crying is a cathartic experience. Tears aren’t signs of weakness as it takes courage to be comfortable with your emotions. - Screaming: In rare cases, trauma can induce this reaction. Let it flow. It is a powerful release of energy, and if it gets stuck in your body, it can lead to illness years later. - Long deep exhalation: Your body is trying to calm your nervous system. Exhaling releases stress and stagnant energy, helping you to feel calm again.

Varied indicators, like pupil dilation or voice changes, go beyond common symptoms like increased heart rate or sweating, giving a wider lens through which we perceive stress. It's imperative to acknowledge that stress, particularly during critical incidents, doesn’t only provoke physical reactions but also significantly impacts decision-making and cognitive functions. Stress hormones, like cortisol, can cloud judgment and impair rational thinking. A deeper understanding and recognition of these physical signs of stress can pave the way for effective strategies to manage it, ensuring both physical and mental well-being in high-stress situations. So we should approach stress assessment and mitigation with a multifaceted strategy.

I agree, in addition a serious occurrence can also lead to post trauma and depression. Therefore, I encourage you to seek counseling as soon as possible when a traumatic event happens. It’s important to express your feelings and release the event from playing out in your brain.

Check the below signs and symptoms: 1) Elevated heart rate and blood pressure. 2) Rapid or shallow breathing. 3) Sweating or clammy skin. 4) Muscle tension or trembling. 5) Difficulty concentrating or making decisions. 6) Heightened anxiety or fear. 7) Sleep disturbances or insomnia. 8) Increased irritability or agitation. 9) Overwhelmed or racing thoughts. 10) Decreased appetite or changes in eating habits.

In my experience stress in a critical incident can manifest in many ways like rapid heart rate, anger, fear as well as emotional shut down and numbness. All the usual fight/flight responses as well as contract and collapse responses. If a critical incident overwhelms my normal coping mechanisms, it helps to think in terms of Green, Yellow or Red. Green as "This is ok" and Red as "Stop". It gives a marker for where I am emotionally, physically and/or mentally. A marker to gauge my situation with a little more focus so I can think and talk myself into clarity. Believe it or not, one can be overwhelmed emotionally or physically and still the mind moves clearly and slowly. Our bodies are built to think clearly when adrenaline takes over.

Emotional signs are crucial in spotting stress during tough situations. Feelings of detachment, ongoing dread, or acting differently, like being overly careful or rash, can all hint at underlying stress. Even unexpected calmness can be a signal. Paying attention to these emotional signs is vital, as it helps in providing the right help and support on time. Ensuring that people feel safe to share their emotions and have access to professional aid is key to maintaining mental health during and after hard times.

When I had an accident, which left me unable to walk for 18 months, I was in hospital for 5 weeks. The first few weeks passed ok but then I felt like I’d been sucked into a black hole. I couldn’t see past that moment of pain. I felt I had no future , not even a present. It literally was nothingness. They tried to manage it with pain killers but that just made me lose time as well as myself. The only way through was to speak to friends and let them know how I was feeling - even though they had no idea how to help me. The feeling passed eventually, thankfully. If anyone feels the same way please ask to see a talking therapist who can help you. Do not go through what I went through without professional support.

The mind- body connection is powerful when you feel, you heal. And when you accept you can more effectively focus on moving forward in your daily routine, activities and personal relationships.

Exercise is a great way for me to cope with stress. It helps release endorphins, which are natural mood lifters, and it reduces feeling of anxiety. Regular physical activity can also improve your overall well-being and resilience to stress. Whether it's a brisk walk, a yoga session, or a workout at the gym, finding a form of exercise you is a powerful stress management tool.It also helps to form new ideas to solve issues and also helps to calm down to think better.Sometimes when you workout you get a feeling of progressing in your health and it ceates a sense of fulfilment.

Cognitive signs are key in understanding stress during tough times. Issues like sudden forgetfulness, difficulty solving problems, or slow thinking can signal stress and make handling difficult situations even harder. Paying attention to these signs, taking breaks to reset mentally, and ensuring a focused environment helps manage these stress indicators. Acknowledging and addressing these cognitive issues, perhaps with professional help, is vital for keeping our thinking clear during stressful events.

Often during stress and difficulties, we can make shame based meaning and direct self blame and negative thoughts toward ourselves. This thought process is incredibly damaging and non-productive. In difficult times we need to pause, take time to breathe and connect to our bodies. We need to be curious about the circumstances. At this time we need to nurture ourselves and have self-compassion. This healing practice of curiosity, nurturing and being with the what is now, allows us to connect with the humanity that we share with others, and to have to new perspective going forward with greater spaciousness, resilience and abundance. It helps to be with nature and to share the events and the feelings we experienced with some one who cares.

Cognitive impairments can sneak up on you or compound following an incident but may not be apparent. Take note of your surroundings, symptoms and mental faculties. Get rest to heal and recover.

Excessive stress can show up in behaviors such us inability to prioritize tasks, procrastination and easy distraction. Either obsessively engaged with texting and social media interactions or over-focussed on single tasks while blanking-out and disassociating from any other stimuli. Impulsively lying to cover covert self-harming behaviors such as overuse of mind altering substances and other addictive behaviors. Impaired sleep, frequent startling at unexpected noises, and inability to tolerate sounds or crowded environments. Digestive capacity will be altered perhaps with constipation or diarrh?a, acid reflux, stomach pains & menstrual changes. A regular lifelong Yoga/meditation practise and communion with nature are ideal healing methods.

As a therapist as well as a human being behavioural indicators are easy to visualise them anything for example - work place stress is good example which affected individuals daily routine as well as personal life like irritating ??, anger at home, being defensive many more.

In challenging times, noticing changes in how people act is crucial to spotting stress. Changes like different sleep habits, not handling regular duties, or interacting differently with others can all hint at stress during critical incidents. It’s vital to address these changes—keeping a regular day-to-day routine, enjoying calming activities, or asking for advice from trusted friends or colleagues can be helpful steps. Taking care of these behavioral changes supports the individual and ensures the team works well together when managing crises.

It’s common to isolate or hibernate following a stressful event. Practice mindfulness as a form of healthy alone time as well as join a support network and learn healthy ways to improve from a stressful experience and reach a healthier equilibrium that you can learn from others who have healed. Having alone time is healthy yet too much isolation is a form of depression. Recognize when that maybe happening and have someone you can talk to for connecting and sharing.

Experiencing shifts in one's spiritual outlook, grappling with moral dilemmas, or wrestling with questions about purpose and meaning signal not just a crisis of faith but an internal stressor, especially during trying moments. Ensuring that there’s a supportive space for exploring these spiritual upheavals - be it through prayer, meditation, or engaging in meaningful conversations - is essential. Encouraging an environment that embraces spiritual diversity and facilitates open, respectful dialogues across different beliefs and perspectives is also pivotal in managing stress and maintaining a united front during crises.

A range of emotions is common and may have you question your faith in God or a higher power. Bad things happen. And with faith and resilience you can heal and grow. And at some point , your faith still is with you , guiding and protecting you.

I agree with the losing faith as that’s key however i wouldn’t overemphasise it as a therapist or spend time illuminating something that is momentary and transient faith is the most deep and absolute truth each person has It is one’s identity and authenticity- whether it be spiritual, religious, or both I’ve explored both Faith is the source of one’s rehabilitation It is one’s spiritual centre and soul My very religious father would be proud My super spiritual psychic astrologer mother too! Not written by AI ????

This article confuses the effects of stress AT/DURING and incident- as it unfolds, and the longer term and accumulative effects of stressors. Short term stress disorder (STSD) is very different symptomatically, and if not processed and handled appropriately, has the potential to bring havoc to one’s life (and their loved ones). It most also be noted that some people are better suited at dealing with critical incidents- and with it are some process to both prepare, but also to weed out those who would most likely be negatively impacted by operational stressors.

I agree with both Vali Majd and Jane Evans. Critical conditions induce high level stress. It is better to have a cooling off period before starting any remedial measures. The person affected by stress out of critical condition needs company of a compassionate person, who will be just accompanying the person.

It’s very normal to have a period of stress reaction following a critical incident. Having at least one person you have free, easy, safe access to who truly LISTENS to how you are feeling. And holds back on giving advice and their opinions is an essential part of coming out of being stuck in a natural stress reaction.

Other indicators are post incident indicators and can not be observed immediately rather they appear or witnessed after some time and they need particular measures to address those specific conditions and these indicators can be considered as Psychological indicators so they need to be treated psychologically.

Physical and emotional indicators are the primary part of any critical incident we should address these immediately. Usually physical indicators are visible easily we should try to mitigate those indicators by physical action by providing first aid or such activities to make sure physical well being of ourselves and others. Emotional indicators can be seen by carefully observing the person going thorough critical incident, once you observe any emotional indicator like fear, numbness, sadness etc. this should be addressed according to the situation for example in case of indication of fear the person should be accompanied by close family and friends, sense of security and safety should be provided.