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PTSD- Intervention of Sports/Fitness: Bradley Davis, Sports Reporter with WAPT-16, Coverage of Rolling Fork Disaster
By: Charles W. Boatright
There are traumatic events that take place in our lives that can cause us to develop repressive feelings, if we aren’t able to evaluate and address these traumatic events soon after they occur. Our conscious mind suppresses these events at the time in our subconscious mind where we can function as a survival mechanism until we can fully evaluate and catalog them as experiences. These traumatic events, if we aren’t able to evaluate and catalog them as experiences, can become debilitating and can trigger episodes of the following:
- Feeling apprehensive.
- Feeling powerless and fearful.
- Having a sense of impending danger, panic or doom.
- Elevated heart rate and blood pressure.
- Rapid breathing.
- Muscle tension
- Sweating.
- Trembling.
- Feeling weak or tired.
- Feeling withdrawn.
- Not being able to express how we feel or our emotions
These are typical signs and symptoms, listed above, of a person experiencing PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or Condition) that we usually associate with Veterans who experience combat-type traumatic events. But in reality, we all can experience conditions of PTSD after a traumatic event that we aren’t accustomed to dealing with in our life. This is like a natural disaster, like the tornado that occurred between March 24-27, 2023 in areas of the country, particularly in Rolling Fork, Silver City and surrounding Delta areas in Mississippi on March 24th, 2023.
After a traumatic experience like a natural disaster, those affected can develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or Conditions similar to what Veterans experience on the battlefield or First Responder can. Please keep in contact with those that have experienced a dramatic event, especially our Veterans and First Responders.
These symptoms listed above are just some of the responses people can experience that are triggered by one of our five senses, like visuals that we see in the aftermath, sounds we hear, scents that we smell, internal or external feelings that we have, certain tastes that we experience, or even a gut feeling. All these six senses can trigger these emotions listed above.
It is important to be aware of our feelings and emotions that are triggered by our awareness and responses we have to our surroundings in the aftermath. This is because our feelings are how we can interpret our emotions to a current situation or event. PTSD episodes usually occur during current events or anticipated events in how they impact one or more of our senses. I use sixth sense, because intuition, or our gut, feeling is just as real as the other five senses are.
Even our gut feelings are caution signs for us to be mindful of in a given situation or a perceived situation. If not addressed and cataloged as an experience, these suppressed memories can become so debilitating to a point that we can’t even function for a period of time. Until we can reason what has happened and catalog what occurred as experiences, we are trapped by fear and anxiety.
A Technique of Being Mindfulness
A great technique of intervention and treatment is what is referred to as mindfulness or being aware of our thoughts and feelings without being judgmental or critical, because a lot of what occurs is out of our control. Even actions that are in our control, the conditions aren’t in our control.
Mindfulness-Based Analysis (MBA) reduces anxiety levels in people who have experienced a traumatic experience. Three common MBA techniques are Yoga, physical exercises, and group sports. The reason these are more effective than even group counseling is that the person has to stay in the moment, or in the present. The athlete knows all too well what occurs if they think about the past or the future; their performance and effectiveness will suffer. They have to stay in the moment and in a routine.
Mindfulness includes how we evaluate our feelings, without grading their importance and/or significance of them. Like in a legal case, every piece of evidence has to be considered, weighed evenly, because we don’t know how each piece of evidence will impact the outcome of the case. What we might consider as inconsequential at the time to our case, might very well be the biggest impact on the case dealing with PTSD.
Weighing the Present Situation
Some of what we might consider as being the most trivial part of a case, might turn out to have the biggest impact on determining the outcome; the same is true in dealing with PTSD. This is the importance of why mindfulness is essential in dealing with anxiety and PTSD. Consider your feelings as evidence to what has occurred in order to build the case to sort through the evidence and determine the cause and effect.
Mindfulness allows us to take on the role of an investigative reporter or as a detective; thus, the term detective derives its term from seeking out evidence.
In some special cases, lawyers have to bring in forensic scientists to help evaluate the evidence and determine its impact. Like in the Duke Lacrosse Case, where the DNA evidence that the prosecution was using to prosecute and prove guilt of the three young men. That DNA evidence actually was what helped determine their innocence at the conclusion of the case in how it was missed handled.
In some cases, we have to bring in others to help us evaluate and sort through our feelings and emotions that we are dealing with in our lives. This is the importance of sports in a group setting where we can share experiences. When we are doing something physical it opens up channels into our subconscious mind where these feelings are store, and sometimes suppressed. Seeking help doesn’t reflect on our ability or lack thereof dealing with our emotions, when we have to reach out to others. Asking for help isn’t a weakness, but actually what helps us ALL achieve success in our lives by learning.
How Sports Psychomotor Therapy is used to treat PTSD
Rolling Fork, Mississippi, in the Delta, was devastated by the impact of an EF-4 Tornado that hit a town of 1,776 people and the surrounding communities on March 24th, 2023, approximately at 8 p.m. Very little was left of a town that looked like an aerial bombardment had took place, similar to the devastation that occur during World War II.
Bradley Davis, a sports anchor/reporter with WAPT-16, did a great special report on junior and high school age students who are coping with their anxiety and traumatic stress through Sports. Due to these students losing their sense of stability, daily routine, and support. Coaches at schools are getting these students in these affected areas of the Mississippi Delta involved in sports, even if it noncompetitive sport like fitness. Daily patterns of routines, like what is associated with sports, provide a stable structure and support in these communities that is called Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT).
During the 2023 SEC Baseball Tournament at Hoover, Alabama, yesterday (26May2023) Peter Burns asked one of the Texas A&M Baseball players, “How he dealt with the pressures of performing on such a large stage?” The Texas A&M player replied, “We focus on our routine and never get ahead of ourselves and just stay in the moment.” This is why sports and fitness are such great CBT techniques to treat PTSD.
Post-conflict intervention like sports, provide young people with a cognitive behavior technique by alleviating symptoms of what can only be described as PTSD, some are listed above. This is by improving their mood, confidence, and interactions with others at a team level by having a stable routine and discussions.
These team sports and especially fitness involve our large skeletal muscles that are critical for our mental and physical well-being for establishing balance and neurological pathways to the subconscious mind. Our subconscious mind is where 85 percent of our capabilities are located, especially performing in a sport. Also working and strengthening these large skeletal muscles is what provides and reverses the effects to reduce stress levels and even the aging process.
Coaches, health professionals, and community leaders can have a dramatic impact on those dealing with PTSD. This is where schools and churches can provide spiritual help, coupled using sports and fitness as a CBT. Even under normal conditions, it is estimated that 31.9 percent of adolescents are affected by an anxiety disorder. That again is under normal conditions. You throw in a disaster, like an EF-4 Tornado into the mix and you can only imagine the impact these people are dealing with from such a disaster.
This is where people across our state and nation can feel like they can do something to help those in these affected areas by donating sports equipment to these coaches at high schools and junior high schools. This will help them to provide Psychomotor Therapy-type intervention to these students and even adults.
Remember, just like in our health and fitness, it is the small, consistent routine things we can do that have the biggest impact in our lives. What benefits the heart also benefits the mind, as well.
I have written a book, OPERATION DOG-TAGS, on how to incorporate Sports and Fitness as a very effective method on dealing with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (or Condition). Sports and Fitness especially in a group setting have been proven to be very effective to treating those dealing with PTSD. This has been demonstrated in Rolling Fork and surrounding areas effected by the March 24th, 2023 EF-4 Tornado.
Bradley David, Sportscaster/reporter with WAPT-16 in Jackson, Mississippi, proved the effectiveness of Sports and Fitness in his report that I have attached two of his special video reports above on in how high school coaches are opening up their practice sessions to area teens.