Psychological First Aid

What is psychological first aid and why is it important?

When we think of first aid, we usually imagine what we would do if someone close to us was injured and had to wait for medical help. Psychological first aid is a concept that many people are not familiar with. However, each of us can help a person in distress by providing psychological first aid.

Psychological first aid is necessary when a person needs psychological support after a traumatic, often life-threatening event. It also includes practical help and support for the person's immediate, short-term needs - shelter, food, safety (or a sense of security). Those trained in psychological first aid are able to listen to and reassure the person in need and connect them with the kind of services they need to survive and feel safe.

Psychological first aid is not provided by professional therapists, but mostly by trained volunteers. These can be ordinary people, teachers, firefighters, etc. We train people with relevant professions who, after completing their training, are excellently qualified to provide psychological first aid to people in distress.

When is psychological first aid necessary?

After traumatic events that occur in a community, psychological first aid is required and is increasingly being provided. This can be a natural disaster, a terrorist attack or something else that separates people from their community. It can also be a robbery, a sexual assault or a life-threatening accident. Psychological first aid is always required when there is a possibility of significant psychological or emotional trauma.

This is the kind of support that people rarely receive after a traumatic event - psychological and emotional support. It can reinforce the sense of control that is usually lost after an event that you feel unable to prevent or change.

Algorithm for psychological first aid

When providing psychological first aid, you should adhere to a few basic rules:

• Restore your own emotional balance. Master your emotions - a skill that will enable you to help people in any emergency situation.
• Pay attention to your personal safety and the safety of the person you are trying to help. If possible, find a place that is as quiet as possible.
• Introduce yourself and tell the person that you want to help them. Draw their attention to you by asking: "Can you see me?", "Can you hear me?", "Can you understand me?".
• Under severe stress, a person shows the so-called "tunnel vision effect". At this moment, the person only sees the frightening image or the horrible details of it. Immediately try to expand his polyvision.
• Speak slowly, calmly and clearly, using simple words and simple sentences. This approach will help the person to stabilize their condition. This person's world has just collapsed before their eyes and they don't feel supported.
• Create a dialog. Ask the person for their name. Then correct the situation: "Was he going somewhere?"/"Where was he before the incident/explosion/accident?
• The stressful situation divides this person's life into two parts - the "before" and the "after". The continuous flow of life is disrupted, so we need to create the conditions for its restoration. Ask the person:

             "Where can you go now?"

             "Can you call someone?"

• Do not include emotions and feelings
• Do not use words and expressions such as: Disaster, tragedy, panic, terror. Do not use clichés such as: "Everything will be fine", "Don't worry", "Relax" or "Everything will pass". After such statements, the person will feel misunderstood and lonely. At that moment, he will immediately think: "No one understands how bad I feel", and he will certainly not trust you.
• Repeat his answers
• "I understand you! You come home from work and...". These repetitions help the person realize that they are heard, that they are not alone in this difficult and hard situation.
• Look for a way to help the person regain a sense of control over their own life, a sense of personal independence. Ask the person to do something - describe the place, describe/count the buildings or people around, read out some texts from signs or posters or involve them in the process of rescuing other victims (if any).
• Explain to the person that their reactions are normal in such a situation: "Now you are feeling fear/ pain/ terror/ confusion/ desperation/ apprehension... This is completely normal in this situation."

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