Don't Panic

There is a really good article in Men’s Health this month called “The Case for Vacationing Dangerously” by Mark Jenkins.  Jenkins, a lifelong adventurer shares 7 crucial lessons he’s learned over the course of his life and poses the question “When did men become domesticated animals?”  His number one tip is to get off your ass and leave town, live a little.

Unlike the author, I have never been in Tajikistan, been around guns, or had men screaming at me in a foreign language, OHHHH and I am a girl…..but nevertheless, I think he suggests some great tips for being a bad ass when you could just panic.  The way you handle yourself and make decisions when you are under pressure is the difference between being a survivor and victim and I am always in awe of anyone who is capable staying cool.  I also think you can apply to these tips to life in general.  You don’t have to be in severe danger to freak out and lose it, whether you have a flat tire on the side of the road or you’re about to speak publicly. 

Here they are:

1.     Don’t let fear speak for you. The author talks about how one of the men who was with them in Tajikistan did something stupid because he was scared.  He sent out an SOS text message on his satellite phone with the lat/lon coordinates of the military base, which made the group all look like spies when they weren’t.  Scared people do stupid things.  Instead of reacting from the emotion that consumes you, you have to breathe and tell the emotion to take a hike for the meantime.  You can deal with it later.  I think that people who react the best under stress seem to be able to channel their adrenaline better than someone who lets it consume them.  Adrenaline is there for a reason; you just can’t drown in it and lose your mind.  People who are panicking can’t be trusted to make decisions.  There is a reason we all remember the man on Flight 93 who said “Let’s Roll.”  No, he didn’t want to die, but he calmed down and was capable of seeing the big picture and rose to the occasion.  He didn’t think about himself and his anxiety, he overcame it.  I can only hope that if I find myself in a dangerous situation, I will be that person.  

2.     Patience Isn’t Just a Virtue; It’s Your Passport.  In order to stay cool, you have to be patient.  When a person becomes impatient, they lose control of their logic and allow emotion to take over.  If you expect everything to go your way and become angry when it doesn’t, all you do is become flustered because you expected some other outcome.   Have something to keep you busy, but keep your cool.

3.     Survivors Bend So They Don’t Have to Break. Peter Suedfeld, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia, says that other than sheer will,  “a foremost trait of a survivor is intellectual flexibility.”  They improvise, they are adaptable, and when one thing doesn’t work, they try another.

4.     Danger is Temporary. This is true.  Think of any situation you have been in or have witnessed…no matter how horrible it is or how you feel, it does have an end.  Dr. Suedfeld says that being an optimist consists of 4 elements:

·      Recognizing that the situation or circumstances are temporary.  My friend, Kellie, was lost in Atlanta traffic a few years back and I told her “Don’t worry, Kellie.  You’re still on Planet Earth.”  I don’t know if it helped, in fact, I think she laughed at me, but she can’t deny that I do have a knack for being eternally optimistic and when I am not, I depend on my friends who can remind me to be more positive.

·      Distinguishing between real and perceived threats. Jenkins uses the example “you’re being held, not tortured.”

·      Recognizing that just because you haven’t found a solution, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t one.  Don’t give up.  Keep being creative, keep your will, and the solution will present itself.

·      Believing that you have some control over the situation. Jenkins says that his best friend and traveling buddy used to say, “Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it!  Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it!”

5.     Play the Game of Options. Literally play the game of options.  Go through your mind and list the ways you can get out of something.  You can get as comical as you want. 

6.     Breathe. Suedfeld says the final trait of a survivor is being able to tolerate bizarre circumstances.  If you can do this, then you are pretty much prepared for anything. I like to apply Occam’s Razor to most situations, but this doesn’t mean that I don’t expect the “illogical” or “bizarre.”  As long as I am prepared for a bizarre situation, I can tell myself to attempt to apply logic later.  I believe that even chaos has a reason for existing, so therefore, why wouldn’t I be prepared to handle it? You have to be creative enough to accept that anything is possible.  If you can do this, you panic less because you have already accepted the fact that it has happened.  At that point, all you have to do is run through your mind and figure out how to deal with it.  Also, “Fight or Flight” is there to save you, so the first thing you have to do according to Dr. Seudfeld is to stop moving.  Force yourself to stop and breathe consciously.  Exhale completely, then inhale and hold the breath for a count of three.  Take 15 of these and it will bring your heart rate down and disperse the adrenaline rush.  Dr. Reid Wilson, Ph.D., director of the Anxiety Disorders Treatment Center in Chapel Hill, says that panic is like getting lost in your mind.  You have to find your mind first before you find yourself out of the woods. 

7.     Danger Can Be Funny. Never lose the ability to laugh.  This is why I laugh about my house catching on fire…yes, I woke up to a fire, but I also ran out of my house and banged on my neighbor’s door in my underwear.  How often do I run around outside in my underwear?