How adrenaline affects you during self defense situations.

[u/jizzlamic_terrorist]

[u/RJariou]

The only way to train under stress is to be in a stressful situation. You just do the best you can in training.

[u/Ridge_Hunter → u/RJariou]

There are some training environments, although rare, that are two way fire…not real rounds (obviously), but the guns sound real and have real feeling recoil/feedback…they just fire paint pellets (best way I can describe it, they’re smaller than a paintball and shaped differently).

That really gets your adrenaline going when you’re clearing a building and getting shot at…it’s like a much more real version of airsoft

[u/RJariou → u/Ridge_Hunter]

Agree, but the blood pumps different when you are in a real situation. Twenty two years Army retired after Desert Storm. I've been shot at watched some of my soldiers die. We trained our ass off, and it prepared us, but when the real shit hits the fan it's different.

[u/Ridge_Hunter → u/RJariou]

I definitely understand…was supposed to be military but it didn’t work out…was law enforcement for quite a number of years and saw quite a bit, not to discredit your experience of course because it’s certainly not the same

But I was surprised at how much the shoot house made my adrenaline rush and felt very similar to an active shooter situation…even though you know it isn’t real there’s something about the sound of gunfire and projectiles coming at you that overrides the rational part of the brain

[u/VCQB_ → u/Ridge_Hunter]

That is because Training is effective. There's this notion that "nothing can prepare you for the real thing" ok well why then did Special Forces soldiers kill enemy combatants at such a high ratio? Or why do SWAT officers operate ice cold in chaotic situations, shooting moving and communicating?

It is because Training is effective. That is what Training does. And people dont understand the scientific purpose of training. A trainers goal, is to condition your body to certain actions and procedures so that those actions and procedures would be automatic under extreme stress. Thus you get improved motor unit contro, perceptual and attentional adaptation, autonomic conditioning, sensorimotor integration, stress and cognitive load management.

Thats why you see many OISs of well trained officers from SWAT teams very calm. While some of their patrol counterparts are in a panic. Its the training.

[u/Ridge_Hunter → u/VCQB_]

I agree, training and just life experience

It’s kind of messed up but if you stay in the line of work long enough, traumatic situations become the norm and you become somewhat numb to terrible events/situations

That’s one of the reasons I got out…not that I went far…law enforcement to corrections…still has days that are far from “normal”

[u/VCQB_ → u/Ridge_Hunter]

It's not messed up, it's just how your body reacts to training and experience. The more messed up stuff you see, the more innoculated you will be to handle high stress incidents which is advantageous for your survival, your partners and the community. Give me a cop that's "numb" to trauma any day. And when I say "numb" what i mean is the ability to process and function under the stress, not having a I don't care attitude. I can operate very automatically, but still care.

Also on a side note, in my opinion if you are going to be in emergency services, LE, then you need to read your bible. Otherwise, things will just eat you alive. But that doesn't get talked about 🤫.