The Warrior Nation: SITREP

If you've been following The Warrior Nation: SITREP over the last few weeks, you know that we introduced the idea of incorporating the Principles of War as a means of dealing with PTSD. In doing this, my hope is to help you achieve a deeper level of thought about how you might go about choosing methods for your healing.  By introducing a single Principle of War, in a series of posts over the next several weeks, I am giving you a new set of criteria that you can use to evaluate the possible courses of action that you choose for your healing journey.

I realize it may sound a bit counter productive to use war principles for healing an anxiety disorder, but allow me the opportunity over the next few weeks to expand this thought and see if this might apply to you or someone you know that might be working to rid their life of this disorder.  If you continue to follow this series, you can save time with future posts by going directly to the bold text highlighting the week's highlighted Principle.  This week we look at the principle of:

Mass - Concentrate combat power at the decisive place and time

In a therapeutic approach, Mass is achieved through picking several complimentary approaches to healing.  Anxiety disorders are by their very nature, are never a one-size fits all disorder.  They take time, patience, and require a strong commitment to work through the pain and discomfort that is going to be produced in facing this disorder.  In dealing with PTSD, know this:  You are not alone!  Seek out groups to share your experiences and always look for the opportunity to help others that are beginning their healing process.

Talk therapy and life coaching are 2 complimentary approaches to dealing with trauma.  The former deals with your past, all in an effort to bring out the sources of "trapped anxiety"inside you from past trauma.  The latter deals with the present and the future, with a focus on guiding you towards the objectives you set for yourself.

Take Away

There are many helpful resources that are available to help you in your healing process.  Many of these are complimentary.  If given the opportunity to face an overwhelming enemy, would you chose to do it alone or bring as many forces to bear in an effort to achieve personal victory?

Yeah...Mass...it's a good thing! (or as my warriors would say, "Get some!")

You do not have to do this by yourself!

Warrior, out!

If you've been following me over the last few weeks, you know that I introduced the idea of incorporating the Principles of War as a means of dealing with PTSD. In doing this, my hope is to help you achieve a deeper level of thought about how you might go about choosing methods for your healing.  By introducing a single Principle of War, in a series of posts over the next several weeks, I am giving you a new set of criteria that you can use to evaluate the possible courses of action that you choose for your healing journey.

I realize it may sound a bit counter productive to use war principles for healing an anxiety disorder, but allow me the opportunity over the next few weeks to expand this thought and see if this might apply to you or someone you know that might be working to rid their life of this disorder.  If you continue to follow this series, you can save time with future posts by going directly to the bold text highlighting the week's highlighted Principle.  This week we look at the principle of:

Security - Never permit the enemy to acquire an unexpected advantage

If you've been following this blog for the last six weeks you've probably, like many skeptical warriors, been waiting for the opportunity to see if I can really string all the Principles of War together to work for post traumatic stress disorder.  With only 3 Principles remaining, I can assure you that I will accomplish that end.  With that said, let me now say that of all the Principles of War, Security is going to be the toughest to achieve.  But, in order to ensure we hit the mark on this post, I think it is important for me to manage your expectations right out of the gate.  Most of you that are struggling with the demon of PTSD know that you can flashback, have nightmares, and auto-create the emotions associated with your trauma at the drop of a hat.  Knowing that happens, you probably are wondering how you can be "secure" with a force that comes out of nowhere.  Again, I'll say, it starts with your mindset.  If you think about security and what it REALLY is, it's nothing more than early warning that allows you to respond to the threat at hand. Here's some additional information that helps to expand this thought.

Imagine your trigger (hopefully you have identified your triggers that cause you so much pain) as a warning siren that letsyou know that the demon of PTSD is closing in on your position.  In an effort to prepare for the demon crashing your perimeter, wouldn't you like to have an accurate countdown timer on this bodily action?  Well here goes brothers and sisters and I realize this will be complicated, but for most of you I'm sure you will understand the timing:

A danger presents itself and 16 seconds later:

0:16   An environmental signal travels into the brain. In response, the amygdala, a primitive structure in the brain, fires off a nerve impulse to the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus sends a chemical signal to another part of the brain called the pituitary gland.

0:25 In the pituitary gland, corticotrope cells release adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) into the blood stream.

0:38 Simultaneously, nerve impulses travel from the hypothalamus along the spinal cord to the adrenal gland (atop the kidneys). Both the chemical signal (ACTH) and the nerve impulse initiated in the hypothalamus travel to the adrenal gland.

0:49 In the adrenal gland, the nerve impulse signals chromaffin cells to release epinephrine (also known as adrenaline) into the bloodstream. Epinephrine will travel to many different cell types throughout the body.

0:54 The ACTH previously secreted by the pituitary gland travels through the blood stream to cells in another area of the adrenal gland.

1:01 On the surface of an adrenal cell, the signaling molecule ACTH docks on a MC2-R receptor, causing it to change shape.

1:03 Inside the adrenal cell, the conformational change of the receptor causes the G protein complex to become activated and uncoupled. The G protein stimulates adenylate cyclase to convert ATP (the cell’s energy molecule) into cAMP (a signaling molecule).

1:08 cAMP activates Protein Kinase A (PKA) causing it to release its catalytic subunits. The catalytic PKA subunits travels to the mitochondrial membrane and switches on a protein called steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (commonly referred to as StAR).

1:11 StAR is responsible for mediating the complicated task of importing cholesterol into the mitochondrion.

1:13 Inside the mitochondrion, enzymes convert the cholesterol into 17-OH-pregnenolone. 17-OH-pregnenolone is released from the mitochondrion and sent to the endoplasmic reticulum, where it is converted into 11-deoxycortisol.

1:25 This compound is then sent back to the mitochondrion where it is finally transformed into the final product,cortisol. Cortisol leaves the adrenal cell by freely crossing the cell membrane, and it enters the bloodstream.

1:35 Cortisol will travel through the bloodstream to several cell types. It will initiate signaling cascades in these cells resulting in an increase in blood pressure, an increase in blood sugar levels, and suppression of the immune system.

1:42 Remember the epinephrine that was released earlier by the adrenal gland (sure you do), well from here, the epinephrine will travel to several cell types, eliciting different responses.

1:45 On the surface of a liver cell, epinephrine binds to an alpha-1 adrenergic receptor causing it to change shape.

1:47 Inside the liver cell, the conformational change of the alpha-1 adrenergic receptor causes the G protein complex to become activated and uncoupled. The G protein binds to phospholipase-C, causing it to produce and release the signaling molecule IP3.

1:58 IP3 binds to receptors on the surface of the endoplasmic reticulum, stimulating the release of calcium ions.

2:04 Calcium interacts with phosphorylase kinase, stimulating it to release its associated molecules of glycogen phosphorylase.

2:11 Glycogen phosphoryase breaks a glycogen molecule into individual glucose subunits.

2:26 The newly-formed glucose is transported out of the liver cell and it enters the bloodstream. This glucose will provide an immediate source of energy for muscle cells.

2:28     Simultaneously, epinephrine travels through the bloodstream to other cell types.

2:42 In the skin, epinephrine binds to a receptor on an erector pilli smooth muscle cell. This causes a signaling cascade (similar to the glycogenolysis signaling cascade, above) that contracts the muscle, raising the hair on the surface of the skin.

2:56 On the surface of sweat glands, epinephrine binds to Alpha-1 adrenergic receptors, triggering a signaling cascade that contracts the gland, squeezing sweat to the skin’s surface.

3:15     In the lungs, epinephrine sets off a signaling cascade that relaxes muscle cells surrounding the bronchioles to enable increased respiration.

3:26  Epinephrine can have opposite effects depending on the type of signaling machinery present in the cell. Docking on alpha-1 adrenergic receptors on the erector pilli muscle causes contraction, while docking on beta-2 adrenergic receptors on bronchiole muscle cells cause relaxation.

3:51     In the heart, epinephrine acts on the pacemaker cells, stimulating them to beat faster. As a result, energy and messenger molecules are circulated throughout the body at a faster rate.

If you want to see how this happens, you might want to watch this movie for a better understanding.

Take Away

At it's most basic definition, Security merely implies early warning. Within 4 minutes of a triggering event, your body's natural processes will make your heart beat faster, your skin to start sweating, your breath to become more shallow and your senses keener.  This is also when the demon is alive inside of you.  Your Security, therefore, lies in knowing where your triggers are and your efforts to develop new coping strategies to slow down the advance of the demon that is coming your way.

At Warrior Life Coach, we use mindfullness techniques to strengthen the neural pathways of your body that can compensate for the release of adrenaline into your bloodstream.  Additionally, we incorporate a process known as Subconscious Restructuring® or SR® for short.  With Subconscious Restructuring® you will learn a breakthrough method called Stop and Replace that allows you to short circuit the effects of adrenaline mediated responses in your body.  To learn more about this and other coaching methods we offer, please go to our website located at www.warriorlifecoach.com .  I look forward to working with you.

Warrior, out!

If you’ve been following The Warrior Nation: SITREP, you know that I introduced the idea of incorporating the Principles of War as a means of dealing with PTSD. In doing this, my hope is to help you achieve a deeper level of thought about how you might go about choosing a method for your healing.  By introducing a single Principle of War, in a series of posts over the next several weeks, I am giving you a new set of criteria that you can use to evaluate the possible courses of action that you choose for your healing journey.

I realize it may sound a bit counter productive to use war principles for healing an anxiety disorder, but allow me the opportunity over the next few weeks to expand this thought and see if this might apply to you or someone you know that might be working to rid their life of this disorder.  This week we look at the principle of Surprise.

Surprise - Strike the enemy at a time, at a place, or in a manner for which he is unprepared

As many of us know, PTSD is classified as an anxiety disorder.  Simply put, we become anxious or fearful for a couple of reasons in life; mainly loss of control, inability to respond, or we respond physiologically due to some unresolved past trauma.  The central player involved in the regulation of human fear is a small almond-shaped organ in our brains called the amygdala.  Research has shown that the amygdala is also where emotional memories are stored.  Emotional memories are the catalyst to many of the flashbacks our warriors experience when they are dealing with PTSD.  This is the battleground where reactions to past trauma take place and this is where you can incorporate the principle of Surprise in your quest for peace of mind.  Allow me to expand this thought, if you will.

You see, when danger is sensed in our bodies, nerve impulses stimulate the amygdala, which triggers other activities in our bodies; namely the release of adrenaline into our blood stream via the adrenal gland.  The effects of adrenaline in our bodies are numerous and have for centuries served our survival as a species well.  Most notable of these effects are:

• Diversion of the blood from less vital to more vital organs.
• Increase in the heart rate to supply more blood quickly.
• Increase in the blood pressure to supply blood efficiently.
• Increase in the respiratory rate to get more oxygen from the atmosphere.

In the past, when a caveman encountered a saber-toothed tiger, these effects assisted him in running away or fighting. Incombat, these effects serve our warriors by increasing their reflexes and reaction times.  However, long-term exposure to adrenaline can have very harmful effects.  Consequently, when the emotional memories of combat are triggered in the warrior's amygdala, these same bodily effects kick into gear.  Without even being in a situation that might be considered fearful, the release of adrenaline into our bloodstream can cause our breathing to become shallow and rapid, cause our heart to race, and produce horrific aching in our skulls.  The reactions that kept us alive in combat become the response and behaviors that we now exhibit, even though we are no longer on the battlefield.  This combat reaction in a land of peace is very confusing and sometimes embarrassing to our combat vets.  It causes hardships to those around them and sometimes serves as a reminder to all the atrocities that our warriors have witnessed and consequently keep locked inside themselves.

Additional problems that manifest from this condition are insomnia, panic attacks, migraine headaches, angry outbursts, and the inability to concentrate.  Knowing that adrenaline alone can cause these problems for our returning warriors should be enough to give us pause to look for non-pharmacologic solutions to deal with this natural response.  Too often, in my opinion, warriors that report these symptoms, are regrettably met by psychiatrists that give them prescriptions.  These prescriptions are for medications that only dampen the effects of the body's natural defense.  This is where the use of Surprise plays a crucial and documented role in controlling the body’s natural reaction.

Looking at the definition of Surprise, as it relates to the Principles of War, we see that a warrior must "strike at an enemy at a time, at a place, or in a manner for which the enemy is unprepared.  What I would suggest to my brothers and sisters in arms is to reshape the battlefield on a ground of your choosing; a place where hypervigilence falls to its knees and your peace of mind reigns supreme.  This battleground is known as Mindfullness and it is achieved through meditation.

The Sounds of Silence

I am pausing here.

I am waiting.

I am breathing...

Now I am looking around to see how many of my warriors might still be here, looking to re-learn something that they have forgotten.  I know that many of you are rolling your eyes at the thought of meditation.  That's because you might be suffering from an anxiety disorder and your natural reaction to the unfamiliar, is to dismiss it or ridicule it.  To you, I say....remember...and breathe!

Meditation is not a religion.  It is not a cult activity.  Meditation is self-control and only possible if you want it to work. People often think of meditation as being nothing more than relaxation, but that is only one of the benefits.  Research in the field of neurology has shown that meditation can be helpful in creating neural pathways into the regions of the brain that have a dampening effect on the amygdala.  This is a little like muscle memory, meaning the more you do it, the easier it becomes.  Knowing that the amygdala serves as the accelerator for stress-related responses, wouldn't it make sense for you to develop a "braking methodology" for stress?  Through meditation you can, over time, create a stronger level of control over your runaway adrenaline system.  This requires discipline and continuous practice.

Meditation, however, not only involves relaxation (the cessation of unnecessary effort) but promotes mindfulness, which helps the stress-sufferer to recognize unhelpful patterns of thought that give rise to the stress response, and also involves the active cultivation of positive mental states such as kindness, compassion, patience, and forgiveness.  If you still think meditation is too "new age" or goofy for you to use, then consider this fact:  The skills used in meditation are the same ones you learned to use when firing your rifle!

At the very core of developing strong meditation skills is the ability to control your breathing. In some yoga practices, it is sometimes called a life force (or prana), that you are controlling when you master your breathing. Therefore, as you control your breath, you control your life force.  Sound strange still?  Then consider the following instruction:

"Breath control is important with respect to the aiming process. If the sniper breathes while trying to aim, the rise and fall of his chest causes the rifle to move. He must, therefore, accomplish sight alignment during breathing. To do this, he first inhales then exhales normally and stops at the moment of natural respiratory pause." I took this quote directly from the U.S. Army's Field Manual - FM 23-10 - the principle training document for Sniper Training.

Take Away

So think of it this way, if you will commit to meditation, you are learning to "take aim" on your disorder while simultaneously dampening the effects of adrenaline on your body.  This is the element of surprise, because PTSD thrives in a world enriched by adrenaline.  Controlling your breath is the beginning to controlling the physiological responses that this disorder uses to keep you off balance.  In a world of mindfulness and controlled breathing, post traumatic stress disorder loses its advantage.  By choosing to create an environment of your choosing, you gain the upper hand and you surprise PTSD and reduce its ability to control you.

I incorporate the use of Subconscious Restructuring® into my life coaching practice.  Part of this process includes a meditative component.  If you would like to learn more about this practice and how it might help you or someone you know that suffers with PTSD, you can find more information at www.warriorlifecoach.com.

All the best,

Warrior, out!

If you've been following me over the last few weeks, you know that I introduced the idea of incorporating the Principles of War as a means of dealing with PTSD. In doing this, my hope is to help you achieve a deeper level of thought about how you might go about choosing methods for your healing.  By introducing a single Principle of War, in a series of posts over the next several weeks, I am giving you a new set of criteria that you can use to evaluate the possible courses of action that you choose for your healing journey.

I realize it may sound a bit counter productive to use war principles for healing an anxiety disorder, but allow me the opportunity over the next few weeks to expand this thought and see if this might apply to you or someone you know that might be working to rid their life of this disorder.  If you continue to follow this series, you can save time with future posts by going directly to the bold text highlighting the week's highlighted Principle.  This week we look at the principle of:

Simplicity - Prepare clear, uncomplicated plans and clear, concise orders to ensure thorough understanding.

The challenges facing our warriors returning from combat theaters are numerous. These same challenges begin to take on exponentially greater numbers when these same service members begin to transition back into the civilian sector.  If you think you have your head wrapped around that reality, now consider adding the complexities and additional adjustment factors that come into play in the presence of PTSD, a disorder rooted in adrenaline and hypervigilance.  If you're like me, you can quickly begin to feel the overwhelming frustration our warriors are going through.  If that's not enough of a challenge, then I'd like you to take in this recent medical knowledge from an article published in the Archives of General Psychiatry: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) appears to be linked to reduced attention in soldiers 1 year after returning from Iraq.

According to the authors, these results confirm previous research suggesting that extended exposure to life-threatening situations can bring about changes to the brain that create faster reaction times but reduce attention, the capacity to learn, and even affect memory in the sufferers of PTSD.  With these kinds of facts before us, wouldn't you agree that Simplicity has a place in your healing plans?  Of the veterans I work with, I consistently hear about how overwhelming their civilian decisions are and how many times they forget or confuse their treatment plans.  That's where simplicity can be helpful.  Granted, there can be many interpretations on how to bring simplicity into your life.  I'd just like to focus today on how you can simplify your daily routine.

As adults we grow with information, tools, and skills.  Information, as previously pointed out, is not lacking in our transitioning warriors lives.  Skills are things that you learn and consequently get to take with you when you transition from one job to another.  If it's one thing our warriors all have as a skill it is the ability to "prepare" for events.  It could be a barracks inspection.  It could be a uniform inspection.  It could even be a combat patrol.  Regardless of the event, you have the skills to prepare.  What you need is a different tool!  I'd like you to consider the use of a time-tested tool that can simplify your daily life.  You may even use this tool presently, so I'd like all my readers to re-evaluate how you use the To Do List.

The To Do list can be a powerful, yet simple tool to use in your daily life.  Some people see the To Do List as just a list ofeverything you need to accomplish.  When confronting PTSD, that type of approach can be counter-productive, as an endless list of competing tasks can eventually become overwhelming.  In my coaching practice, I seek to incorporate some time honored lessons that show you how to work smarter, not harder.  These lessons come to us, courtesy of Vilfredo Pareto, who by his name gave us The Pareto Principle.

The 80/20 Rule

The Pareto principle (also known as the 80-20 rule, the law of The Vital Few, and the Principle of Factor Sparsity) states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes.  In sales, we'd say that 80% of revenue comes from 20% of the sales force.  In customer service, you could probably point to 80% of complaints you receive that come from 20% of the customers.  In productivity, 80% of your work comes from 20% of your effort...the trick is to identify that top 20%!  Granted, it won't always be an exact 80/20 split, but the correlations will be such that you will see a bigger gain from the few tasks chosen for accomplishment.  This requires preparation, something you are very skilled at and here's how to do that:

Make a list of everything that you must accomplish in the upcoming week.   For some of us, it may be over 50 items, others may have no more than 5.  It doesn't matter about the number, just get the tasks out on paper.  Now use a simple rating code for each task, using A, B, and C...where A is an "Absolutely Must" accomplish this today, B is Important, but you don't quite have a sense of urgency like your A tasks, and put a C next to any optional tasks that are on your list.  Unlike a combat zone, where everything is an Absolute Must, I would ask you to give some serious thought to what tasks "deserve" an A rating.  This time you take will make the most difference in your productivity, so don't rush it!

With the prioritization complete, re-write your list with the A's first, followed by your B's, then finally list your C's.  Even if Pareto himself were to ask you where your most productivity could be realized, you could quickly point to the 20% that will yield the biggest bang for your buck.

As you accomplish each single chosen task (I totally discourage multi-tasking; more on that in the future), it is important to check off your accomplishments.  I say this for 3 reasons:

1.  Keep track of your progress.  Creating a sense of accomplishment is essential to diffusing the frustrations associated with PTSD.  With some visual proof of your success, you will begin to create a real system of control over the things that are within your influence.

2.  Self-Medication.  Research studies demonstrate that recognizing our accomplishments release the "feel good" endorphins into our bloodstream that create a feeling of happiness and harmony.

3.  Handle on Reality.  We, as humans cannot control everything in our lives.  Without taking inventory for what really matters in our daily routines, the world we live in can become extremly overwhelming.  Throw in an anxiety disorder and the challenge feels greater than any one person can bear.  By keeping a list of tasks we deem to be "ours" grounds us in what is most important.

Take Away

In the early 1940's, the U.S. Armed Forces circulated a pamplet with a prayer that went something like this:  God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.  To kick start this serenity, try a To Do list to bring simplicity into your life.

Warrior, out!