Flipping your lid - some quick trauma learnings from my first week in Winnipeg

Our brains. See explanation below

Re-engaging the brain, see explanation below

Welcome to Turtle Island (North America)!

I am currently in Winnipeg the capital of the province of Manitoba.

The National Human Rights Museum, right at the fork of two rivers

Some fast facts about Winnipeg and Manitoba to pull you in.

• Winnipeg is the third coldest urban centre to live in in the world. I’m feeling the chill! It is at least 50 degrees warmer than its minimum of -40.
• It is the only province in Canada founded through an act of violence (debatable I am sure). The founder of Manitoba was Louis Riel, a Métis leader, leading a rebellion to form a republic. He was driven into exile by the British and the region became administered by the Anglo-Canadians. Following this, due to severe discrimination, many Métis people had to leave.
• Winnipeg has the largest urban Indigenous population in Canada, and the second-highest in North America after Anchorage.
• Alcohol is only sold through government owned outlets, meaning more alcohol regulation, low numbers of liquor outlets, and higher tax revenues.
• Manitoba has the world’s largest mating dens of red-sided garter snakes. Apparently, these snakes come together in their thousands right about now. I keep being told to go and find them.
• It is a culturally vibrant city with constant waves of migration (some crossing from the US now) and a diverse and rich Indigenous heritage and cultural.

This is the background and parts of the context to which I’ve begun my travels and research. It has been a fascinating first week.

I will provide a sweeping overview of first encounters and experiences soon.

As a starting point, I want to share some practical learnings from a workshop that I attended on my second day at the wonderful Klinic community health centre. It was a ‘trauma-informed care’ workshop looking at how we approach and understand trauma in everyday interactions.

This information should be helpful for EVERYONE, whether you work directly with trauma or not, it is our day to day relations and interactions that keep society calm and safe. As we were told in the workshop, no one is immune from the impact of trauma.

Below is the lesson we were taught.

The Situation

• We encounter someone who is visibly stressed. They’re angry, afraid, anxious, aggressive, crying. They are showing many emotional signs of discomfort.
• This person could be a friend, colleague, family member, partner, client, they could be someone that has walked into your life as a stranger. This person could be anyone at any moment.
• It seems that you can’t reason with them. In your attempt to calm them down, telling them to stop it, telling them you’ll get someone if they don’t stop, in other words, you’ll intervene with authority, only makes them worse.
• The more they are told to calm down the more they retreat into themselves, shut down, or shout louder.

The Reaction

• This person for whatever reason has been triggered.
•  It could have been something you said, something they felt, saw or sensed that has reminded them of a traumatic experience. This doesn’t happen consciously for the person; it just suddenly happens. Sometimes a person can feel emotions building but the overwhelming moment when they are suddenly unleashed is difficult to predict.  
•  Something has triggered that person and their emotions have been released.
• This person probably has no understanding of what it was that triggered them.

What’s happening

•  As Gabor Mate has written, an internal process is happening because of an external event.http://www.alternet.org/drugs/gabor-mate-ayahuasca-maps-conference-2013 
•  That person has engaged their limbic system within their brain (it drives our emotions and is connected to many nerves) to save and protect them.
• They are acting as if they have been threatened and are in danger.
• To use their energy effectively their brain and body is only working on instinct and emotion – flight, fright and freeze.
•  Blood is going straight to their thighs in case they need to run. Their digestive system is shutting down. They are on high alert and are only ready to react.
• Their prefrontal cortex has been disengaged which means they can no longer rationalise what is happening.
• This is all helpful evolutionary mechanisms when you have to save yourself. It is not helpful when you have been triggered in an everyday setting.

What to do?

• You need to bring the person’s prefrontal cortex back into action.
• They need to be able to think again and respond to you effectively.
•  It doesn’t help if you ask them rational questions or give them rational solutions. Such as, why are you so angry? Nothing bad is happening here so calm down. Or, I didn’t say what I think I’ve said, you miss heard me…
• Distraction is the best way to re-engage. Engage with their emotional brain by indicating senses.
• Ask, do you need a tissue? Here is a cup of tea… mention the sound of something nearby, the temperature or the weather. Offer a hug or a touch of the hand, but don’t give it if it is refused.
• Talk to them about how you understand how tough things are.
• Relate to them kindly, say a gentle word or an affectionate term. Always keep it emotionally related, not rationalising the situation.
• That person will start to calm down. They will bring their prefrontal cortex back online and they will be able to think again.

How to remember this?

The diagrams above (struggled to put them below) are from Dr Dan Siegel. He teaches about using your hand as a fist. When someone is triggered the fist flips open and your rational brain is offline.

Check it out online with some other very useful resources for keeping yourself and others calm.

http://www.drdansiegel.com/resources/everyday_mindsight_tools/

Once we were taken through this exercise I could see so many people in this situation, myself included. For when any of us get mad or angry to one degree or another we are being triggered and this is what is happening to our brains. When we know these skills, we are better able to work with each other to never make someone feel stupid, judged or blamed for their reaction, but to work with them and their brains to re-engage.

When you know it, it makes ‘sense’! That’s another hint, always engage the senses that will re-engage the brain.

Can we avoid triggering in the first place? 

Yes! Kind of...

One way to keep things calm and safe is to avoid triggering in the first place. This is not always possible, but we can do things to contribute to more relaxing environments that make people feel immediately at ease. As I was taught at the Klinic these are signs of safety, inclusiveness, anti-discrimination, and soothing colours along with so much more.

The Klinic building displays many flags to show that people of all nationalities, gender and sexuality are welcome here. It does not discriminate.

The Klinic healing and conversation room displays many pictures and colours to ensure that all first nations people are at home in the space.

Reminding mothers that breastfeeding in public is welcome, but if they want a private space they can ask for it too! All these visual ques are very important keeping people in a relaxed mind and body.