Spiritual Minded Military Vermont Army National Guard: How to Stop PTSD Flashbacks—The Trigger Shutdown Protocol
Wood smoke odor. A helicopter can be heard in the distance. A hastily thrown door slamming too loudly. A voice like that of a lost loved one.
You're in your kitchen in Burlington. You don't live there. You do not take part in combat. You are safe. Your body is not listening to you.
The flashback suddenly materializes. One instant you're here. The following second, you will be there. Your heart races. Your palms sweat. Your vision tunnels. You cannot breathe. You cannot think. You can't recall that you are safe.
Don't worry, being flashbacked doesn't mean that you are broken. The flashback is a cue from your mind that it is trying to keep you safe. The protection has expired! The solution is the Trigger Shutdown Protocol.
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." — 2 Timothy 1:7
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WHAT IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING IN YOUR BRAIN
A flashback is not a memory. A memory is something that you remember. A flashback is an experience that you have gone through again. Your brain will not distinguish between the memory and the event!
Your amygdala is hijacking your brain. The amygdala is the alarm system. The alarm is going off. There is no fire.
During a flashback the thinking part of the brain is turned off. That's why there's no escaping it. Which is why “calm down” doesn't work. That's why it's worse when people tell you to relax.
The trigger shutdown protocol goes around the thinking brain. The protocol directly addresses the alarm. The protocol communicates to the alarm, "False alarm. Stand down.
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THE VERMONT WOODS PROBLEM
Vermont is beautiful. The Green Mountains. The forests. The quiet. The isolation.
The same peacefulness that makes Vermont beautiful makes flashbacks worse. No sound to distract you. No people to ground you. No traffic. No sirens. Only you and the flashback.
The enemy uses the Vermont quiet as his amplifier. If there is no sound except you, then your alarm will sound louder.
The Trigger Shutdown Protocol can be performed in any location. However, it is particularly effective in Vermont, where being quiet is your friend. There are no enemies in quiet. The quiet is a place you can hear yourself again.
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THE TRIGGER SHUTDOWN PROTOCOL (IMMEDIATE ACTION)
You need something that you can do today. Not in five minutes! Not after you've cooled down. Right now.
There are four steps to the Trigger Shutdown Protocol. Do them in order. Do not skip.
Step One: Change
Hot flashback? Facial cold water. Ice cube in your hand. Go outside and enjoy the cold Vermont weather.
Cold flashback? Hot coffee. Warm shower. Hands on a warm cup of Spiritual Minded Mushroom Coffee Blend.
Your body doesn't last in a flashback when the temperature changes. The sudden temperature shift restores balance to the nervous system.
Step Two: Name Three Things You Can See
Look around. Find three things. Say them out loud. “Look, I can see the window, look, I can see the lamp, look, I can see my hand.
Your eyes are looking at the flashback. Make them pay attention to the here-and-now. Make them pay attention to the here and now.
Step Three: Move Your Body in a Way that Matters
Stand up. Sit down. Walk to the door. Touch the wall. Only you are immobilized in the flashback. Movement says to the body, "We are not frozen; we are here; we can move.
Step Four: Say the Year Out Loud
Your brain requires being told the date. Your brain has to hear where it is. Your brain requires hearing that you are safe.
The four steps only take minutes to perform. The flashback takes a turn for the worse.
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THE TRIGGER MAP
There are no triggers that you can avoid if you don't know them. A map of the enemy's territory is essential.
The Trigger Map is your intelligence report.
Record all the flashbacks in a list for a week. Not all the flashbacks. Just the trigger.
- Day One: Helicopter sound. 3 PM.
- Day Two: Wood smoke smell. 6 PM.
- Day Three: Loud bang. Noon.
You have a map after 1 week. This map lets you know where the enemy is lurking. The helicopter sound. The wood smoke. The loud bang.
Now it's time to prepare. It's impossible to eliminate all of the triggers. You can be ready for them.
The enemy can't get the advantage over you when you have the map.
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THE FOUR-SECOND RULE
A flashback takes a long time to pass. They do not. The typical flashback is 30 to 90 seconds.
The Four-Second Rule provides a standard to determine the flashback.
Begin repeating the number when the flashback begins. One. Two. Three. Four. The flashback is still there. Keep counting. Thirty. The flashback is starting to fade. Sixty. Flashback is being phased out. Ninety. You are back.
The flashback will not be interrupted by the counting. The counting provides something to occupy you while the flashback is being played out. You are reminded that there is an end to the flashback because of the counting.
Count the seconds. The flashback can't be forever.
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THE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW
The flashback is over. You are back. Now what?
The after-action review is the intelligence that comes out of a flashback.
Think about the three questions below:
- What was the cause? Not all the answers. The one that began it all. The sound. The smell. The sight.
- For how long did it go on? Be honest. Flashbacks seem to be longer than they actually are.
- What brought me back? The temperature change? The naming? The movement? The year?
You are not a victim of the flashback. You are a soldier collecting intelligence. The enemy's patterns become visible. Your counters become stronger.
"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal." — Philippians 3:13-14
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THE CAMP JOHNSON ASSIGNMENT
Camp Johnson in Colchester is the headquarters of the Vermont National Guard. You have trained there. You have drilled there. You have stood in formation there.
Camp Johnson taught you to identify threats. Apply that training to your flashbacks.
The flashback is not the enemy. The trigger is the enemy. The flashback is the symptom. The trigger is the cause. Find the trigger. Map the trigger. Prepare for the trigger. Shut down the trigger.
The Trigger Shutdown Protocol is not about avoiding all triggers. The Trigger Shutdown Protocol is about having a plan for when they come.
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Conclusion
Vermont Army National Guard, flashbacks are not a life sentence. Flashbacks are a response to a trigger. The trigger can be mapped. The response can be interrupted.
The Trigger Shutdown Protocol is your interruption tool.
Change your temperature. Name three things. Move your body. Say the year out loud. Count the seconds. Review the trigger.
You are not back there. You are here. In Vermont. In your kitchen. In your body. Safe. This is the Spiritual Minded Military Trigger Shutdown Protocol for the Vermont Army National Guard. You are not back there. You are here. The protocol brings you back. Fall in.
The Remnant does not transition. The Remnant re-enlists.
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