how do you guys deal with anxiety issues in major disaster?

I've never really had to cope with a major disaster, but in the local scenes with which I have been involved, correcting the condition creating the anxiety is important, as well as sorting out the situation, and taking effective action to care for injured victims seems to help. Basically, impose order on chaos, and then demonstrate to anxious people that things are working once more, and that there is a task they can accomplish to help.

Isn't that why husbands, in an emergency childbirth situation, are always detailed to boil water?

I stop. Slow my breathing and heart rate to focus and calm. Then use STOP then act as needed to solve the problem or help those who need it. Shutting off all emotions helps with triage and others pain in a time when sympathy and compassion can result in casualties. It's how I was trained and it has served me well for a long time.

Training kicks in. Focus on tasks...mentally go down the checklist. Abc's

As an adult I've been close to only one of what I would call a "major disaster." That was 9/11 and the anthrax attacks that followed. That morning, when we still thought there were more planes incoming, my hands were shaking notably as I was trying to figure my next move and what to do in regard to others I was responsible for or care about.

The #1 remedy in alleviating my anxiety on 9/11 was access to news reports.

The biggest anxiety for me that morning was NOT KNOWING what exactly had happened and what was going to happen next.

Once the news stations got a grip on what was happening (many false and alarming reports were broadcast in the first 60-90 minutes on 9/11) and after the government shut down the airspace and security mobilized in the city then my anxiety alleviated greatly.

One of my indelible memories of that morning is all the pedestrians and car drivers sharing with one another what they were hearing on the radio or seeing on television. Cell phones were mostly not working. Everyone hungered for news.

Now I have battery-operated portable radios in the car and at home -- in case there ever is a disaster in which we lose power.

Not knowing what disaster will occur next or when, the best thing I can think to do to deal with anxiety during and after a disaster is to try and mitigate it in advance, through preparedness.

I have now a checklist of priorities and preparations so ingrained in my brain I think that will help tremendously, whatever disaster occurs.

In the event of the likeliest disaster scenarios I am, and will be, comforted by: 1) gas in the car (I keep my tank topped off or nearly so) and bicycles and bike trailers; 2) a couple of months of food for me and my dog; 3) water storage for at least two weeks; 4) First Aid kits in the car and home; 5) radios and ample batteries to stay abreast of news; 6) sleeping bags, tents, etc.

Shelter-water-food-first aid - with those bases covered, I know that I and my loved ones are in pretty good shape. I am an experienced camper so even sleeping outside in the street in a tent, or my SUV, is not alarming to me.

Whatever happens, if I'm not injured and am at or near home and my home is still standing, then I won't need to worry about near-term survival (assuming the disaster is not a radiological or bioterror event) for me or my dog or a few friends for whom I have extra in the short-term.

I know I can walk 3 mph. I know I have water, food, a sleeping bag, first aid, etc. etc, in my SUV.

After studying the DC terrorist nuke scenario report I'm even less anxious about that -- because I have more knowledge of the threat and strategies to deal with an occurrence.

Knowledge. Have a battery-powered radio and LOTS of batteries. Know the threats. Know you're prepared. Know in advance the best strategies in response (that includes any loved ones you are responsible for or concerned about).


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That's the big one with me. What's going on, and consequently, how much should I react? When we had the big September power outage, the news reports were saying three days before the power starts to come back on and boil water orders were being issued for adjacent neighborhoods. The power came back on less then 24 hours later. Once I know what I'm dealing with I can react properly and not pull a Chicken Little.

I don’t have an IPhone, but several members of our department (fire) do and have downloaded an app that allows them to hear all of the fire calls (both locally and anywhere in the country), including communications when the event is moved to an EMS, Fire or Tactical channel. You might want to look into this app which would provide real time information of emergency activities in your area or elsewhere in the country. Often, news stations don’t have the full story and make assumptions as to what is unfolding, so news of this type may not be all that useful.

Pete

Interesting, Pete, thanks.

I am wondering if i-Phones would work any better in a major crisis today than cell phones did on 9/11.

I really have no idea. In a disaster of that magnitude and everyone suddenly wanting to call/e-mail/text everyone and get on the Internet, is the cell/internet infrastructure better or less capable than it was in 2001?

Seems there are bandwidth constraints today in non-emergency times.

“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.”
-Mike Tyson

I think you're training should simulate getting punched in the face because a situation like 9/11 is no doubt worse than that. If you're like me, participating in a competition under pressure would be a lot more productive than reading about how to deal with a 9/11 situation or whatever. I personally learn best from doing something.

I can't do 9/11. So, a substitute is playing organized sports, especially games or competitions. They greatly help you get a grip on where you stand with controlling yourself during a chaotic/pressurized situation. The higher the stakes, the better the training will be. Instead of studying how to deal with anxiety, you're actually dealing with it on a regular basis. You must learn how to deal with limited information in a short amount of time, and you must learn how to be calm enough to do things correctly right now, not during the post-game analysis when it's too late. For us older folks, we can participate in races and go for a personal best. For the younger folks, you have more options, like playing school sports, taking the last shot, etc.

I imagine guys like Brett Favre and Michael Jordan would do quite well in a chaotic situation like 9/11, if they had to do so.

While a fair question ... I can't think I've ever had something cause any real "anxiety" in me. Grew up with earthquakes coming out of the blue - no big deal (never had catastrophic damage by me). Wildfires? Never that close to me. Flooding, tornadoes, hurricanes? Never seen one. 9/11 I was at work, on the west coast. Sure, we all thought LA was next, but I wasn't anxious, I was running over mental scenarios and whether I'd be called off my paid job to staff a volunteer municipal job.

My work since '96 has been either EMS or health care. I've never had a really crazy event to even 'test' whether I'd GET anxious. Multi-car wrecks are about the extent of mass-casualty events that I've done. Sure, sometimes at work I can get testy, irritable, or just plain pissed off, but rarely what anyone would describe as anxious. It really makes me wonder if it's training, lack of a large enough event to trigger it (living in Syria or the Sudan would probably do it!), or if it's truly my disposition.

Maybe someday I'll be able to report back.