Management Critical Incident Stress Management Reactions 1

Reactions after a Critical Incident

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 Emotions following a critical incident are 

normally different or more intense than usual.

Don’t be afraid of them.

 Accept your emotions as normal and part of the 

incident survival and recovery process.

 Anxiety or “triggers” relating to being involved in 

a similar event in the past.

 Try not to second-guess your actions. Evaluate 

your actions based on your perceptions at the 

time of the event, not afterwards. 

 Understand that your actions during the incident 

may have been based on the need to make 

critical decisions for action. Some of these 

decisions had to be made within seconds. 

 Accept that you may have experienced fear. 

Fear is a normal emotion and should not be 

interpreted as weakness.

 Fear the safety of yourself or loved ones. 

 Disbelief at what has happened; feeling numb, 

unreal, isolated, or detached from other people 

 Sleeping can be difficult for a while, and you 

may have dreams and nightmares. This is 

normal. Unusual sleep and dreaming patterns

usually return to normal within a few weeks.

 Increased startle response.

 Guilt and/or self-doubt related to the traumatic 

event.

 Anger or irritability at what has happened; at the 

senselessness of it all.

Immediately After the Event

 Remind yourself that your actions are a normal 

result of trauma and should decrease over 

time and become less painful.

 Avoid using alcohol as a primary critical 

incident stress management strategy. 

 Try to get back into your normal routine as 

soon as possible; you may need to gradually 

introduce yourself to tasks that seem difficult. 

 Be kind and patient with yourself; engage in 

enjoyable and relaxing activities. 

 Continue to talk to your family, friends and 

colleagues about the trauma.

 Even if you feel a bit distant from other people, 

do not reject genuine support. 

 Maintain your exercise routine. If you do not 

have a routine, start some daily light exercise. 

 Do not take the activities of the systems 

personally. Keep the needs of the various 

systems (administrative investigation, criminal 

investigation, the press, etc.) in perspective.

 It is normal to have the incident play over and 

over in your head. Repetitive incident replay is 

a feature of the psychological process leading

to recovery. Incident replay normally gradually 

subsides over a period of several weeks.

 Physical symptoms: muscle tension, fatigue, 

headaches, nausea, lack of appetite.

 Problems with concentration, or memory 

(especially aspects of the traumatic event).

 There may be some aspects of the experience 

that will be difficult, if not impossible, to forget. 

How to Handle the Next Few Days

Certain severe traumatic events, however, threaten both the physical and mental health of individuals. An unusually 

intense stress response may interfere with the body's immune system, rational thinking and one's emotions. Severe 

stress impairs a person's ability to respond to further challenges. 

Extreme stress disrupts performance and threatens health. It may leave permanent psychological scars if it is not 

managed carefully. Keep an open mind. Allow your family, friends, and peers to help. If your reaction(s) continues to 

seriously disrupt your life, seek appropriate help.

Interagency Critical Incident Stress Management Program
 

Critical Incident Stress Management Reactions 2

Positive Recovery Family, Loved Ones and Friends

Seeking Help

Keep in mind that you are naturally resilient. If you do 

not feel good now, allow yourself some time to 

process the event. You will feel better over time. 

Positive recovery involves the following:

 You will accept what happened. You will 

accept any experience of fear and any 

feelings of vulnerability as part of being 

human. Vulnerability is not helplessness. 

 You will accept that no one can control 

everything. You will keep a positive 

perspective. 

 Learn about or become acquainted with the 

features of normal post-critical incident 

responses. This will help you to understand 

that much of what you’re feeling is a normal 

part of the recovery process.

 You will learn and grow from the experience. 

You will be able to assess all future 

circumstances on their own merits. You will 

become stronger, more empathetic and more 

resilient.

 You will be aware of changes in yourself that 

may contribute to problems at home, work, 

and other environments. You will work 

positively to overcome these problems.

 Be especially aware of any personal suicidal 

thoughts or feelings. Although rare, suicidal 

thoughts have been known to occur following 

critical incidents.

 Prepare yourself for some negativity. There 

are few critical incidents that are not criticized 

by someone. Stay grounded in what you know 

to be true to minimize the damaging effects of 

unjustified and uninformed private or public

opinion. 



Following a critical incident, especially those in which 

and individual could have been killed, some spouses

and loved ones come to realize the true dangers of 

firefighting. The dangers of now feel much more real and 

generate firefighter-safety anxiety. In such cases, the 

reality of the critical incident has overwhelmed the 

psychological defenses which previously protected the 

spouse, partner or family members from the anxiety 

associated with the risks of firefighting.

It is important to know that the critical incident does not 

have to involve actual death or serious injury, nor must it 

involve the actual loved one working in fire. Families can 

be affected by what happens to firefighters that are not 

their husband, wife, or partner due to the uniqueness 

and closeness of the culture.

Individuals involved in critical incidents can help lessen 

spouse/family anxiety by openly discussing the dangers 

of firefighting and how they manage the risks or threat of 

the actual incident. 

Do not become a critical incident statistic. Seek 

appropriate professional assistance if your relationship 

becomes troubled following involvement in a critical 

incident.

First responders may be reluctant to ask for 

help for fear of stigma; showing weakness, 

disciplinary action by their agency, not strong 

enough to the job etc. It is rare for firefighters, 

law enforcement and other to share their 

feelings of stress with one another and may be 

awkward for a comrade to even suggest 

someone seek help. A significant step in 

reducing this stigma is education, 

encouragement, and support from all levels. 

Seeking assistance IS consistent with their 

image and in fact, demonstrates STRENGH.

See your agency’s Human Resources 

Department for information about Employee 

Assistant Programs.

While in most instances the symptoms of critical incident stress 

will subside in a matter of weeks, there may be a few 

individuals who will suffer prolonged or permanent emotional 

trauma that can adversely affect their mental and physical 

health, relationships, careers, and daily functioning.

Take notice if you are experiencing any of the following: you 

are uncomfortable in your own skin, you don't want to leave 

your safety zone; you have obsessive thoughts and 

compulsions to act on them. You feel profoundly depressed, 

hopeless, helpless, guilty, or have considered suicide. Your 

behavior has changed; you are more argumentative, engaging 

in fights, abusing alcohol or medication, or are taking 

increased unnecessary risks. Your mind cannot relax, you 

have repeated horrific nightmares, frequent intrusive explicit 

flashbacks, or you feel like you are not connected to yourself 

or your thoughts.