The Air Canada co-pilot who suffered a breakdown yesterday on a flight from Toronto to Heathrow has got me thinking. What do you if someone with your life in their hands loses their marbles?
Said co-pilot flipped out and had to be dragged kicking and screaming out of the cockpit whilst demanding to talk to God. At the same time the plane and its passengers were at 35,000 feet above the North Atlantic. Not ideal.
The co-pilot was shackled to a passenger seat, the crew declared a medical crisis, and the plane came in for an emergency landing in Ireland.
But what if it happened to you? What would you do if someone with their finger on your on / off switch went completely mad? At 35,000 feet above the cold North Atlantic I'd have to fight the urge to follow suit and lose my own grip on reality. But, are there any more positive and remedial steps to take in this kind of hellish situation?
Well, yes, as it happens there are. Admittedly, these techniques are a lot more useful if you're not on a plane with a crazed co-pilot, but oh well:
Grab the nearest sick bag. Put it over the subject in question’s mouth, encourage them to breath into it, taking slow breaths. Alternatively, cup your hands and put them over their nose and mouth.
Try and make the person melting down run on the spot, apparently it helps to calm anxiety.
Look through a wallet or coat to find a picture of a wife / child / dog / Mum. This is said to help anchor people back into reality.
Start moving their hands and fingers over a heavily textured object. This is also meant to be calming.
And, here's what Mind says about hearing voices:
Exactly what someone does will depend on what it is they are experiencing. Some images are so frightening that people freeze, scream or try to hide. The urge to escape may be so strong, that they may, literally, run, flattening anything in their path.
And here's what the charity says about how to cope with delusions:
It is important to recognise, understand and empathise with the distress, anxiety and feelings of isolation, to help reduce these feelings. It is not usually helpful to try and reason against someone's false beliefs, but neither is it helpful to pretend to agree with them. It is usually more helpful to acknowledge their reality for the person experiencing them, while saying that you yourself do not agree or share the experience.
Photo of Air Canada A319 C-GJWF by caribb, via Flickr (Creative Commons)
