I don’t know if you’ve heard of EMDR or not. EMDR stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It’s an amazing kind of therapy developed by Francine Shapiro to help people through traumas big and small.
PTSD and trauma have historically been treated using talk therapy alone. But things are changing with the recognition of the role of the body in processing experiences.
Mental Health awareness is growing every decade. The stigma surrounding mental health issues has been lessening but still has a long way to go. Campaigns such as Bell Canada’s Let’s talk really help in raising awareness.
PTSD in mountain guides isn’t a given. Most people are able to move past dangerous situations and move forward.
There is meaning hidden in the small changes of everyday life, and wisdom to be found in the shards of your most broken moments. Elizabeth Lesser Broken Open There is a book entitled, Broken open: How Difficult Times Can Help Us Grow by Elizabeth Lesser that contains many pearls of wisdom about change, loss, […]
This last week Canmore, Banff, Harvie Heights, Exshaw, Calgary, and a number of other communities experienced the worst flood any of us have ever experienced here. It was like a surreal dream to see the devastation unfold. Many of us were in disbelief as Cougar Creek ripped an ever-widening birth taking decks, hot tubs, and […]
A close friend recounted a horrible event to me recently. He once was alpine touring with a group of five. The longest skiing connection amongst the group was 30 years and the shortest was 2. Everyone was an experienced skier. Each knew how to dig a snow pit and analyze the conditions. All knew how […]
What an amazing life! Winter mountain guides have an amazing job. You take people skiing on amazing, often untracked terrain, lead adrenalin junkies up ice falls, and get to spend all day outside. Oh the life!
Last week I made a presentation at the Canadian Avalanche Association’s Annual Conference on the potential psychological impact of avalanches on rescuers and offered ideas on what kinds of services rescue operations should have in place to support staff.
