How to Stay Calm in an Emergency

ER Tips

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Dec 8, 2022

Want to know how to stay calm in an emergency? The key is to take a deep breath, focus on a goal such as calling 911, and adapt to the situation. Emergency situations regardless of the circumstances can always be frightening, but the benefits of staying calm outweigh those of panicking during trying times.

Remember, no matter the situation, Complete Care’s freestanding emergency rooms are open 24/7 to help whoever is in need. In the meantime, here are some easy ways to practice how to stay calm in an emergency.

Why is it important to stay calm in an emergency?

It’s natural for humans to react in an irrational manner when we are scared or nervous — however, emergencies often call for calm, collected, and coherent actions and clear communication in order to be resolved. If you struggle with staying calm in dangerous situations, you are more likely to freeze, hesitate before acting, make mistakes, and experience side effects that don’t help bring the situation to a resolution. Emergencies require quick and efficient action that only someone in the right mindset can carry out effectively.

Having trouble keeping your cool when disaster strikes? Follow these tips.

1. Take a few deep breaths

When an emergency arises, your body will naturally kick into “fight or flight mode” and your breathing will speed up. Although this is your body’s natural response, you can begin to panic if you don’t slow down and take a deep breath. Without deep breathing, if rapid breathing is not slowed down it can cause you to have a panic attack, which is often debilitating and can render you unable to take care of the emergency at hand.

Take a few deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth to calm your body down as much as possible. Inhale through your nose, fill your belly instead of your lungs, hold for three seconds, and exhale. Repeat as needed.

This is one of the quickest anxiety attack relief methods you can use when faced with an emergency. Once you feel yourself start to calm down, you can begin taking action in a more decisive manner.

2. Focus on one goal

If you or a loved one are experiencing an emergency situation, your brain can easily become overwhelmed with thoughts and concerns. Medical scenarios can be particularly stressful as your mind is flooded with options, and the pressing need for decisive action works against someone who doesn’t know what to do.

Focusing on one goal at a time is the best way not to stress yourself out. For example, if a family member is exhibiting signs of a high blood pressure emergency, focus on calling 911 first. Once that task is complete, move on to another task such as making sure your loved one is comfortable while help arrives. Trying to do too many things at once only leaves room for error. This is why educating yourself on proper first-aid procedures, ER tips, and other emergency information can prepare you for any situation.

Keep reading: Learn how high blood pressure and anxiety affect one another and how to handle hypertensive crises.

3. Learn to adapt

There will come a time in your life when things don’t go according to plan — medical issues and illnesses are rarely planned for. Once a diagnosis is given, doctors typically share certain protocols with peers or loved ones to prepare them for an emergency. For instance, spouses and family members of someone with diabetes will learn how to stay calm in life-threatening situations in order to handle a diabetic emergency. Instead of responding with fear, these individuals can respond with timely action to help their loved one.

It’s all about adapting your behaviors to notice when an emergency is happening, what steps to take in case of an emergency, and how to carry out those tasks as calmly and efficiently as possible.

Need help with knowing how to stay calm in an emergency? Complete Care can help.

The main benefit of staying calm in emergency situations is to get a person the help they need as quickly as possible. Those who know how to stay calm in an emergency tend to hesitate less and make fewer mistakes than those who are anxious during these situations. We understand that asking someone to “just calm down” is not helpful advice, but practicing these mindful tips can help you to help someone else by making quicker decisions for their benefit.

One of the most important decisions you can make for a patient is how to get help: do you call 911? Do you bring them to urgent care vs. the emergency room? Or is this a situation that can be treated at home? Educating yourself on these topics is a great way to remain calm and get the person in crisis the help that they need.

If you are ever faced with an emergency, you can rely on Complete Care’s emergency medical team to help. With ER locations in both Texas and Colorado Springs, our hospital-grade emergency rooms are open 24/7 and equipped to take complete care of you and your loved ones — no matter the situation.

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