FOT #30 - Being trauma-informed, identifying prejudice, and our mental health continuum
Release Date: 06/10/2020
FOT #36 - Modern survivalism, sex and drug harm reduction, trauma-healing, and Tantra myth-busting
Flight of Thoughts
Ben of The Tantra Punk podcast, joins me virtually to discuss a lot of deep topics that have been resurfacing more recently such as how to be a modern survivalist, prepared to handle daily challenges of a pandemic and uncertain economy. With the riots happening in North America, including the storming of the US Capitol Building it is more important to be prepared for adversity. We bring up healing from psychological trauma and the various modalities that western medicine hasn't fully embraced yet. We bring together the ideas of Eastern philosophies with the scientific...
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FOT #36 - Modern survivalism, sex and drug harm reduction, trauma-healing, and Tantra myth-busting
Flight of Thoughts
Ben of The Tantra Punk podcast, joins me virtually to discuss a lot of deep topics that have been resurfacing more recently such as how to be a modern survivalist, prepared to handle daily challenges of a pandemic and uncertain economy. With the riots happening in North America, including the storming of the US Capitol Building it is more important to be prepared for adversity. We bring up healing from psychological trauma and the various modalities that western medicine hasn't fully embraced yet. We bring together the ideas of Eastern philosophies with the scientific...
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FOT #35 - Violent incidents, Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries, Psychedelic-assisted Therapy, and enhancing cannabis enjoyment
Flight of Thoughts
This was a really fun episode catching up with Charlie Bronson! Charlie is a Paramedic, former 9-1-1 call taker, EMS Logistics, and has education in Biomedical Sciences and Psychology. We catch up about the Covid-19 pandemic and the rise in violent workplace incidents. I update everyone on my recent Post-Traumatic Stress Injury and how I addressed it before it broke me. I also discuss taking time off for post-traumatic stress and how a very helpful friend/counsellor took me underground for an MDMA-assisted therapy session that helped me release an immense amount of...
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FOT #34 - Atypical overdoses, preparing for challenges, microdosing psychedelics
Flight of Thoughts
Many people are experiencing "pandemic fatigue" or work-related burnout. What have you been doing to maintain optimal physical, mental, social, and emotional resiliency? Preparing yourself for stressful challenges or chaotic situations is an ongoing process that is different for each person. Watch your sleeping and eating habits as well as your use of substances during times of stress, to keep control of them. * On the frontlines of the opioid crisis we are seeing many atypical drug overdoses due to the unpredictable street supply, caused by the war on drugs. We have...
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FOT #33 - Submitting to chaos, managing the ego, and accepting our limitations
Flight of Thoughts
This episode covers a deep fear that emergency workers carry. We want to feel that we are trained and prepared to handle anything. It is soothing to pretend that every skill and ability we have harnessed will carry us through any challenge we are met with. The truth is that we can be faced with situations where our training or skills may not be able to overcome the adversity at hand. What we CAN control is working on our self-awareness, communication with peers, doing our best self-care, and maintaining skills/knowledge as updated as possible. Then when a...
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FOT #32 - Non-violent crisis response, front line fatigue, and calibrating the nervous system
Flight of Thoughts
Here, I share some cases where we applied non-violent crisis intervention tactics to de-escalate persons in emergency situations, avoiding the need for police intervention. One situation was during a major overdose, where the client was combative while he was in respiratory failure, the other features someone locked in a bathroom threatening staff. * The last month has been very difficult on the frontlines of the pandemic and opioid crisis. Healthcare workers are experiencing high rates of clinical depression and many other frontline workers are feeling burnt out. Lets catch...
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FOT #31 - Demystifying death, bringing order to chaos, and The Big Lebowski
Flight of Thoughts
Paramedic and podcaster, Chad Bartalone, joins me from Indiana to talk about some of the more surreal and heavy topics surrounding emergency medical services. We talk about how to take away the negative stigma of inevitable death, learning to appreciate and embrace it instead of fear it. How do we normalize the conversation and bring more education and autonomy to patients? Our discussion also covers how to bring order to chaos through radical acceptance and preparation for challenges. We talk about how emergency services can do more for mental health training and...
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FOT #30 - Being trauma-informed, identifying prejudice, and our mental health continuum
Flight of Thoughts
Here comes another solo flight of thought I was having about how we can be better human beings by being "trauma-informed". This leads into how to identify prejudice in ourselves and how it is programmed into us. A major point focuses on the "mental health continuum" model that many first responders and healthcare workers have been introduced to. Being aware of your mental health continuum and the signs that you are struggling can help you avoid falling into crisis, as well as empower you to maintain your most optimal functioning. * This pandemic and the civil rights...
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FOT #29 - Overcoming Psychological Dysfunction, Appreciating Death & Suffering, Mindfulness of Bio-feedback Loops
Flight of Thoughts
Kai Carlsen has clinical experience as a Paramedic, Flight Respiratory Therapist, as well as building experience in clinical development and education. He has worked in various settings from controlled hospital environments to the chaos of ambulance and aircraft response. Kai has been growing through a journey of mindfulness, self-awareness, and peer support that allows him to remain optimal through his career. We worked together early in my career and I always felt he had the perfect energy and intellect for emergency medicine. On this episode we go deeper into some...
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FOT #28 - Identifying Stress Responses, Pandemic Mental Health, and Cannabis Enhancing Emotional Resiliency
Flight of Thoughts
After an intense month with a car accident and a stressful work injury, I update everyone on how I have been coping with these and the growing pressure on the front lines of the pandemic. Learning to identify your responses to stress can be an effective tool for overcoming challenging times. How does stress activate certain thought patterns you have? How does stress store as tension or discomfort in your body? Learning your symptoms and how to work through them can push your from distress to optimal function in your window of tolerance. I also talk about...
info_outlineHere comes another solo flight of thought I was having about how we can be better human beings by being "trauma-informed". This leads into how to identify prejudice in ourselves and how it is programmed into us. A major point focuses on the "mental health continuum" model that many first responders and healthcare workers have been introduced to. Being aware of your mental health continuum and the signs that you are struggling can help you avoid falling into crisis, as well as empower you to maintain your most optimal functioning.
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This pandemic and the civil rights movements happening simultaneously have shaken the foundations of many around the world. This is the perfect time to pay attention to your mental health and build up your most effective self care rituals and become aware of when you are healthy, reacting, injured, or ill on your mental health continuum.
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This podcast is uncensored and covers many topics considered “taboo” or difficult for some individuals. We do not condone any illegal activities, as this is a platform for harm reduction and open dialogue. Although the ideas are mostly evidence-based and honest, the lines of reality and comedy may be blurred at times...this is your trigger warning!