Freezing at Scenes

[Cat]

Evening all,

Now I'm not asking about being cold at scenes, I combat that with thermals!  I was just wondering whether any of you have ever frozen at a scene and if so how did you go about ensuring it didn't happen again?

Its just it happened to me last night and I don't want it to happen again.  Any advice would be gratefully received.

[kurnal]

Cat if you feel inclined, pm me with more details.

Scenario, your role in that scenario, who was with you, part of a team or working on your own, whether physical, emotional or mental freezing, what you perceived you should have done  vs what you did. Then look at the gap between the two. It might have been a team issue rather than a personal issue. 

Dont worry it happens to us all sometimes and some may freeze and do nothing where others see the red mist or tunnel vision and do something stupid. Eg Hillsborough.  Of these options at least if you freeze whilst you aint making it better you aint going to make the situation worse.

[Clevelandfire 3]

Cat it is a fairly common thing. If you see something traumatic shocking or out of the ordinary for the first time or you have to do something which you know carries inherent risk your body will react to that in some way shape or form emotionally .

Sometimes it will hit you there and then or it can be days later and often its worse when you are on your own without colleagues about. Dont be ashamed to talk about your experiences or feelings to your colleagues because that helps to rationalise what has happened and put some persepective on things and will release any anxiety. They will have been through similar experiences.

It can happen to anyone regardless of experience or amount of times they have seen similar things because all situations are different. So dont be ashamed because it happens to us all, talk about it to colleagues or friends or family or if you'd prefer someone independent like a counsellor if you feel its an issue which wont go away.Knowing that youre not the first and wont be the last helps alot too, and you will find next time it wont happen again.

[Tom Sutton]

Cat by the terminology you use it seems you are you still a member of the thin blue line or have you joined the senior emergency service yet.

Because I think the culture of both services are very different the police seem more individual and the fire service more team based. In my experience after a job and the appliances have been got back on the run it was off to the mess for a brew. Over the mess table the job would be discussed, all the funny things that happen including the cock ups of the officers and any unpleasant things that happened also on many occasions not so PR quips made about the situation.

This seems to work like self counselling and I believe the police don’t have the same advantages which could mean discussing things with friends or close colleagues or official counselling is a way forwad. This view is based on the Lockerby incident when many Police offices went for counselling but only one fire officer if my memory severs me well.

[Davo]

Cat

As you know I work for a large police force.
We used to have four Welfare Officers fifteen years ago, down to two by a couple of years ago.
They are gone and now our five nurses do it.
I believe one has counselling qualifications, one other taking them.
There is a professional external counsellor as backup
Our two doctors say the latest thoughts are to let colleagues help each other

Davo

[Cat]

Thank you all very much for your replies, I really appreciate the advice in all of them.  They have helped me put things more into perspective and I believe through one pm I have received I may be looking to much at what could have happened rather then what actually happened! 

It is a big help knowing that I am not the only person to have faced this and am unlikely to be the last for this to happen.  I also know I still have a lot to learn still being young.

Cat by the terminology you use it seems you are you still a member of the thin blue line or have you joined the senior emergency service yet.

Using your terminology I am still part of the thin blue line, I am trying my best to join the senior emergency service

I personally have found the Fire Service and the Police quite different and I feel you are right in what you say.  After an incident there isn't really a time back at the station where everyone gets around a table and discusses whats happened, its usually just straight on to the next call.

Davo, I know we too have OH and its the nurses who do the counselling stuff if we need it.  I hope I won't have to use this, but if the need arose I would definitely go and talk to them.  Being so new I'm not sure how other colleagues would view me freezing.  Talking about it even generally here with people who understand has definitely helped a lot.  Thank you everyone.

[Mike Buckley]

Cat,

As has been said the two services are very different. A major aspect is that in the Fire Service you are part of a team and the team wil support you, it is unlikely that you will be on your own to make a decision.

Another aspect is drilling with the equipment, in my day we did this until we were sick of it, but the benefit was we did not actually have to think how to operate the kit, we had done it so often. Hence if we needed to put a ladder up, a crew got a ladder we all knew what each member of the crew needed to do and we did it, when we saw what position we were in.

Finally there is the understanding of the team. I was told by my first watch commander "If you feel like puking at a job from what you see, tell someone you are going for a walk get round the corner and bring your guts up then come back. We've all done it, just don't let the press see you!"

[jaxter]

Freezing is a condition of body where our senses stop responding to the situation, like our neurons get meshed up and we feel like confused and didn't able to think what to do in that situation. This is the time when our sub conscious mind get stunned and it seems that it stops reacting to any thing.