Coping With Changes And Calamities
Changes in life and situations are common. Some changes are planned and intentional whereas some happen in an unexpected manner, especially when we are not prepared for it. Changes good or bad, intense or mild, intentional or natural, yield a lot of repercussions. As an individual, you will always wish to believe that you will be untouched by upheavals, but as is the nature of life, calamities and disaster strike at their own will!
Though there are always individual differences to learn the process of preparation to face a calamity, there are certain standard ways which you can incorporate while facing a calamity. Preparation for emergencies can be at both physical as well as psychological. Physical preparations can include area and region-specific infrastructural preparations, medical, aid, support workers, etc. Psychological preparations need to be understood, experimented and reinforced during extreme situations.
Stress Inoculation
This is the basic preparatory step towards facing stress. This is basically a procedure of understanding, feeling, thinking and experiencing the situation to the fullest. The initial reaction to any emergency situation is of hopelessness, fear, anger, feeling of helplessness and anticipating tragedy.
3 Basic Levels Of Preparation
1. Anticipation:
This deals with the physical and associated psychological changes in the situation, where recovery is difficult. Thinking about what can happen itself is life-threatening. Unsure and dangerous situations act as triggers for such thoughts. It is marked by a heightened state of panic, Anticipating danger in a threatening situation sets forth a thinking process, though it won’t be always based on a solution.
2. Identification:
Identifying the triggers, both physical and psychological, like tense muscles, nausea, headache, sweating, etc. and the associated thoughts of helplessness, panic are all very natural reactions in such situations. Gaining an awareness of them and focusing and reacting towards finding a way out is aided by this process.
3. Management:
Slowing down the physical condition and replacing thoughts and emotions by continuous reminders, that there can be help and these things happen to many and that you are not responsible for it, will help you to calm down a little and think better.
Coping and managing strategies are very individualistic and are dependent on your thoughts, The most wonderful thing is that you can modify your thoughts to specific situations and bring about optimum fruitful results even during a calamity!