What comes to mind when you hear the phrase “mentally prepared?”
Would you consider this aspect of prepping as a tedious waste of time?
What if I told you that being mentally prepared is just as important as physically preparing if not more important?
True, the majority of people don’t want to think about the worst possible scenarios we may encounter but you are not part of the majority. At least, not anymore.
You’re willing to ask questions and grow in knowledge. Because of this, you’re ready to move forward in the next step of becoming mentally prepared.
What does mentally prepared look like?
Just like any other muscle in your body, your mind needs to exercise in order to grow. To do that, we take classes or buy puzzles or play mind game apps on our phones.
In that same manner, we need to exercise our minds for events that may or may not happen.
Being prepared for the worst and it not happening is always better than the event happening and being unable to react properly.
Just as schools have fire drills and emergency personnel have training days, you need to have your own drills for any emergency events you may encounter.
What kind of events?
Back in my first blog about where to start in prepping, there was this question:
- What types of natural disasters hit my area most?
If you’ve answered this question depending on where you are in the world, then you have a place to start.
For instance, I grew up in NorthEast Texas which is part of tornado alley. I have yet to see a tornado for myself or endure a terror twister busting through my neighborhood, but I’ve seen the aftermath of these deadly storms in recent years. Even now that I live in Ohio, I still prepare for a tornado even though I may still never experience one. I also now have to prepare for actual snow storms, which differ greatly here in the Midwest than in Texas.
Besides natural disasters, everyone should have a fire escape plan in their home. Map out the route depending on where you are in your home and run through practice drills.
Why is being mentally prepared important?
In case you haven’t learned, panicked people are the worst to be close to in scary situations.
They insight chaos and cause more harm in the long run than those who are prepared.
In emergency situations, who do you see remaining calm under pressure? Those who have been through the training.
You have the ability to join them in this calm state by preparing yourself mentally for these situations.
Now, you may never experience a house fire or natural disaster, but the odds of being in a car wreck or coming upon someone in emergency situations are higher. If you have already mentally prepared yourself for what to do in those moments, you can help others because your mind is thinking rationally.
Besides avoiding panic, you can also help yourself not become overwhelmed by doubt. You’ve worked through the plan and can see how to get through the situation.
There is never a need to panic if you have a plan.
What now?
In the next few weeks I will break down how to become more mentally prepared in your every day life, natural disasters, and emergency situations.
Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss out on those future posts!
For now though, revisit the question of what disasters hit your area the most and how you can prepare for them.
Until next time, friends, happy prepping!
