Crisis… Exhilarating or Debilitating.

Why can two people experience the same crisis so differently? One may feel energized and alert while another feels overwhelmed, frozen, and afraid.

Several factors can determine how we experience a perceived crisis. Think about your last crisis. Do you recall your physical response? Were you surprised that you didn’t see it coming? Did you feel supported? These questions and many more can shed insight into whether we see a crisis as a threat or a challenge. Have you ever wondered why a person can describe their experience with a weather event (i.e., tornado) as “cool” and someone can describe the event as “catastrophic”?

A tornado can feel exhilarating, like that of a favorite roller coaster. Your heart pounding, feeling of being on top of the world without a care, and your brain rewarding you for taking the ultimate ride at your favorite theme park. Now consider a second individual who mentally revisits the same tornado with a sense of exhaustion and recalls the moment you were unable to get to safety, as your body felt the weight of the moment, rendering you helpless and frozen in time.

Ultimately, the meaning of crisis is not only found in the event itself, but in the way we recall it, interpret it, and survive it.

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