Shannon Pennington, Senior Chief (Administrative)
North American Firefighter Veterans Network

Firefighters and Stress by Bjorn Ratjen, PhD

First of all: not all stress is bad. When we want to get in physical shape, we put our muscles to work, we stress them a bit, so that they get stronger.

When firefighters respond to a scene, they better be awake. That's where stress comes in. The presence of danger or something unknown creates stress that literally gets our juices going. This positive stress is also called Eu-stress. Everything has to be balanced. Too much of a good thing can have other unwanted consequences. It can create a feeling of high and of power but it can cloud our judgement too. That's when people do stupid things as they eliminate rational thinking.

Too much pressure can create a painful sort of stress. That is sometimes called distress. The consequences are negative feelings and pain. If we attempt to lift a load that is too heavy then our body will react with pain. If we put too much pressure on our skin or pretty much any part of our body, it will bruise or break.

If there is a sudden impact then that would be acute stress. It is like when all hell breaks loose. However, stress can also charge up over time. Athletes stress their bodies over and over again and often joints wear out prematurely. That is the result of cumulative stress.

As humans we have a peculiar wiring. We have our senses that gives us data (sight, sound, smell, touch). In order to interpret the data it is run through an emotional checkpoint before it reaches the main part of the brain. This emotional checkpoint, called amygdala, is a safety filter which can produce three immediate reactions to a strong signal: flight, flight, freeze. Then the information is passed on for processing to the main part of the brain where logical thinking happens. This is important because a basic emotional reaction comes first, before we start to think about the sensory input.

The emotional checking does not stop there though. When we think about something we will look into our mental and emotional library to get help with the interpretation of the sensory signals. Once we found an interpretation we will create an appropriate response. This is where training and experience comes in handy as it provides a good library for action.

All this happens very quickly of course. However, it is important to recognize that we always process emotional and mental (sometimes called cognitive) data.

Firefighters and all emergency personnel work in often stressful environments. A lot of training is dedicated to mental and action oriented response. Practice helps to prepare for emergency situations. However, we never know when we actually need all those skills. Emergencies are usually not planned. They happen and require immediate and flexible response. For firefighters and emergency responders this means that they suddenly have to shift gears and become very alert - no matter what they were doing. This is when Eustress kicks in and releases some stimulants.

The sudden kick of energy can be a positive experience. That's why some people become so called adrenalin junkies as they expose themselves to risky situations. It does not necessarily make them smarter as it creates a goal oriented tunnel vision.

During an emergency response all our senses take in information often faster than our mind can process. Our mind is in high gear as we try to make sense of all the data. What happens when things go wrong or we witness how someone got injured very badly? Remember we are processing emotional and mental data. Often we can explain what happened to some degree but sometimes the emotional processing does not quite go along with what we experienced.

It is important that we put our experiences behind us (closure). That's sometimes easier said than done. If the processing is incomplete then our mind still continues to work at it. Firefighters may dream about incidents or have flashbacks (visual images) about certain situations they encountered. Our mind is trying to put that file away but does not know where to put it. Most of the time we can put these incomplete files away after some time, but they can pile up like clutter. That's where cumulative stress can play a role. Life may throw different scenarios at us and we may be putting them aside until there is so much that we cannot move any more. There is no telling what will get the stress over the edge.

There is another thing about how we think. When we interpret things our mind likes to make sense. Unfortunately some emergency situations lack in that department. If we cannot make sense then we often access our creative thinking. In emotionally charged situations that can spell trouble as we may make assumptions or ask what if? This can lead to an internal roller coaster as we create possible scenarios in our mind and trigger emotional reactions at the same time. Add to that the adrenalin that was created when the alarm came in and you have a potent cocktail.

That's where Critical Incidents Stress Debriefings can help. One main purpose is to complete the data collection, to get all the information and answer all remaining questions. This helps to prevent our mind from going into overdrive. The second part is an emotional check. This is not therapy. It is simply an acknowledgement that we are all human and that we cannot do anything without emotional involvement. We need closure on all levels.

As life hands out different experiences we all get touched in some way or another. All of us experience physical and emotional pain. Sometimes the pain in others reminds us of our own. It can trigger strong reactions that linger: anger, depression, numbness (fight, flight, freeze). It is a sign that we need to take care of ourselves, that we charged up on stress and need to process.

Firefighters are usually strong people. They become stronger through practice and every time they are called into action. Sometimes that strength can overrule pain - especially emotional pain. Think about athletes. They may create injuries in parts of their body and yet they go on as they suppress the pain. Later many of them need reconstrctive surgery. There is no surgery for the soul.

There is no replacement for heart. It is time that we take care of ourselves in order to be able to care for others.