By Lisa Richardson, Psychiatry & Behavioral Health Learning Network, August 10, 2020
We know from years of trauma research that our bodies and minds “perceive danger” in different ways. As a result, it’s reasonable to expect that not everyone responding to the personal, emotional and professional threats of COVID will react in the same way. Individual perception and how people process trauma has much to do with not only their current state of healing but also past events. We know that when our employees perceive emotional or physical danger, they may alternate between fight or flight mode (when their sympathetic system is on overdrive), shutdown mode (when their parasympathetic system stops working due to the threat), or connection (when they can stay present and peacefully process the situation). Many trauma responses, however, are automatic, as the body responds to real or perceived threats based upon a variety of factors.
As leaders at Zepf Center, a not-for-profit organization in Toledo, Ohio, we have tried to take this “shared knowledge” of trauma to help guide our interactions with others during the COVID-19 crisis. It has helped us to understand that many staff may respond in ways that display flight, fight, or shutdown mode. It doesn’t necessarily mean they are intentionally attempting any of the above, but their natural trauma response to the triggers and safety issues related to COVID-19 may cause them to struggle to work through their “natural automated” response and in time come to a place where they can find peace and meaningful connection to move forward with their work. Our training in Sanctuary Principles has helped to guide these responses, as well as create planned action steps to implement trauma-informed practices that not only keep everyone physically safe but emotionally safe as well.
Bessel Van Der Kolk, world-renowned trauma expert and author of the book The Body Keeps the Score, recently gave his tips for dealing with the current situation in the world. In a YouTube video, he stated, “We are all living under a traumatic cloud right now…so the only thing you can control is your reactions.” He kept his suggestions simple for patients or staff to implement to respond to today’s uncertainty.
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