If you were sailing along in a beautiful yacht laughing and enjoying the ride when suddenly a big unexpected storm hits and over turns the very thing you were just standing enjoying yourself on, what would your immediate response be?

Shock
Bleep
Oh God
What the hell
Bleep
Oh no
Numb
Numb
Numb
Shock

or

Oh dang my yacht!!!
WTH
Stupid bleep bleep bleep harbour master said it was going to be CLEAR WEATHER
I am going to crucify that bleeper
He will NEVER find work again and wait till he gets the insurance bill!
Stupid bleeper!
MY YACHT!

or

SHARKS???
Oh God
SHARKS
What was that???
Oh shit oh shit
I’m a goner
They’re going to rip me to shreds
I’m dead meat
Oh God
Oh God
Oh God

or

OK
*breathe*
Access the situation
Stormy seas
Yacht is overturned
Either get my butt under neath and climb on a ledge away from the things with sharp teeth, be warmer and out of the water or climb on the top and hold on so that if people look for me they can see me.
*breathe*
Pro’s and con’s
Swim under yacht and turn on the SOS equipment, try find something dry and climb on ledge out of the water.
OK
*breathe*

How would you respond?

When something happens that we didn’t expect be it traumatic or just emotionally painful we have a variety of responses, some not as good as others.

Are any of the above more right or wrong?

As we go through life we can’t run from the shocks that come at us nor can we ever know how to react in all of them no matter who we are or what life experience we have.  All we can do is react in that moment the best we can, normally by instinct alone.  Life is such that we can’t plan for every single thing that comes our way perhaps instead we can teach ourselves to breathe, stop and assess the situations we find ourselves in and then breathe some more.

Sometimes things aren’t as we immediately thought they were to be

Sometimes there are more options available that will help you out of the dark hole you find yourself in

Sometimes there is land just on the other side of the overturned yacht close enough to swim to

Sometimes when you turn around you will find that you aren’t treading water that in fact someone is there holding you up

Sometimes there are other survivors who are learning as you are and able to help you overturn that yacht

Sometimes good can come from bad in the form of opportunities of survival

Sometimes you are stronger than you think

Guaranteed the most sane and the one that survived that yacht overturning was the one that took a moment while floating in stormy seas and assessed the situation, saw the reality and figured out a way to best survive.

Breathe

The best survival tactic is the pause button, it can save your life both figuratively and in reality.