Dealing With Shock

There are certain moments in our lives that we will never forget. These moments can be moments of great joy or great pain. And in these moments, our bodies seem to overload, often times with emotion and/or other experiences. It is during these times that are body seems to go into a state of emotional shock and our system is overloaded.

Speaking of shock, I’ve been in a near comatose state since my wife and I had our first ultrasound of her pregnancy yesterday and found out that we are having twins! Our emotional system has overloaded with all of the implications that these statement has on our future lives. Many people already have asked us how we feel, but the honest answer is, “I don’t really know”.

In sports there are often these moments of shock, good or bad, when things happen that are unexpected. Whether its a last minute shot that miraculously goes in or a 50-yard field goal that’s a dagger into the heart.

So here are some tips in dealing with emotional shock. This post is probably more for me than anyone else at this point, but if you experience a similar situation, perhaps these tips will help.

1. Breathe-Your biggest risk at this point is losing critical oxygen to the brain. Try to breath slowly and calmly, regulating those overwhelming feelings.

2. Sit Down-Standing can make you feel more dizzy, as your balance as to work harder to keep you from collapsing.

3. Relax muscles and body position-Try to keep your muscles and body from tensing up, restricting blood flow.

4. Cry-Crying can actually be one of the best ways to process emotions, whatever they might be. The physical act of crying provides the emotional release than can otherwise build up and put pressure on the emotional system.

5. Process-If you are an ‘external processor’ try to talk about how you feel, write your thoughts down, or even talk to yourself outloud if your alone. The work of putting your feelings into words can help prevent shock. If you are an ‘internal processor’ find a quiet place to sit and think or take a nice bath or relaxing cat nap.

These tips can help you process emtoional news and moments of shock. While they are inevitable in life, they also provide us with markers of our lives that make life meaningful. I’ll never forget the news of our twins for as long as I live, hopefully the shock won’t kill me.