Remaining calm under stress is rarely easy, especially if that situation catches you by surprise, giving you no chance to do any real preparation. And yet, keeping your nerves under control and acting with a clear mind can prove essential when something like this actually happens.
A story like this happened to this one Redditor. The man, alone with his kids at home, felt a strange sensation and passed out before he could call for help. Fortunately, everything turned out just fine, all thanks to his 4-year-old daughter, who quickly reacted, picking up his phone and getting the help necessary. Scroll down to read the full story!
More info: Reddit
A person's ability to remain calm under stress is always admirable, but it's even more impressive when that person is only 4 years old
Image credits: Ketut Subiyanto
A man dropped off his wife and had just come home with his 2 and 4-year-old daughters when he felt a strange sensation and suddenly blacked out
Image credits: Karolina Kaboompics
When he regained consciousness, the house was already full of police officers and medics, who told him that he most likely had a seizure
Image credits: Mikhail Nilov (not the actual photo)
A little later, the man found out that when he passed out, his 4-year-old daughter picked up his phone, gave the operator their exact address, and stayed on the line until help arrived
Image credits: u/b3dl4
The dad expressed that he was extremely proud of his girl and thankful for her likely saving his life, even if she didn't yet understand the full extent of what she did
The story took place a couple of years ago. The OP had just dropped off his wife and returned home with his 2 and 4-year-old daughters.
As the man walked back into the lounge room after unsuccessfully trying to put the younger child down for a nap, he felt a very sudden and strange sensation. He described it as a really loud white noise that made his head feel like it was exploding.
The last thing the OP remembered from that moment was trying to type the emergency number into his phone before completely blacking out. Once he came back to his senses, the police and medics were already inside his home, asking questions and explaining to the man that he most likely had a seizure.
A little while later, when the dad was feeling a bit better, he found out that it was actually his 4-year-old daughter who saw what happened and picked up his dropped phone. She informed the emergency line operator about the situation, told them the full street address, and stayed on the call until help arrived.
His daughter's feat blew away the man. He shared how proud of her and thankful he felt, theorizing that if this had been a stroke, she would've literally saved his life.
The girl felt proud of herself, too, but according to her dad, she likely didn't grasp the full extent of what she had just done. While this realization was likely to come as she grew older, for that moment, she was just happy to hear all the praise and get ice cream after dinner for a week as a treat.
The commenters praised both the girl for her actions and the dad for doing parenting right. They shared their own stories, pointing out that there are a shocking number of kids who couldn't tell either of their parents' phone numbers or their own home addresses. They also added that many emergency services recognize children for feats like this one, suggesting the dad call them as the girl definitely deserved recognition.
Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio
Whether we like it or not, encountering stressful situations every once in a while is pretty much inevitable. Luckily, Bored Panda had a chance to talk to psychologist Hanan Parvez, who didn't hesitate to provide us with some valuable insights into this topic that might prove very useful when the time comes.
"Your own mental state matters when you're handling stress," began the expert when we asked him about what has the most impact on how we approach stressful situations. "If you're already stressed or overwhelmed in some way, your capacity to deal with stress decreases."
Hanan added that the situation's nature also greatly impacts how easily it can be handled, as most people are not good at dealing with abrupt stressors that strike them unexpectedly. "The more time you have, the better you can handle it. Similarly, novel stressors are harder to deal with than familiar ones."
Continuing, the expert said that if you want to better equip yourself for dealing with such situations, you should first and foremost remember that when you are stressed, your mind will always try to take over your body. "You don't have to fight against your racing thoughts, raised blood pressure, and other autonomic responses. They're designed to help you. Feel the fear, but when it comes to taking action, pause."
The psychologist explained that even the smallest pauses allow people to reassess the situation and consider the consequences of their responses. However, if time is dire and you don't have even a moment to pause, he suggested to listen to your body, as it most likely knows what to do.
Lastly, a person's beliefs can also play a role in this, as both actual and perceived threats trigger the stress response. "It's an evolved mechanism that strives to protect us no matter what. It's better to judge a non-threatening situation as threatening so we can be prepared," summarized Hanan, saying that in some vague situations, something may or may not be perceived as a threat based on what a person believes in.
Ultimately, while likely not understanding the full extent of the situation's seriousness might have contributed to her reaction, the girl in the story handled this situation extremely well. She didn't freeze or start to panic. She simply assessed what happened, understood what she had to do, and did it flawlessly, possibly saving her father's life in the process. And for that, she definitely deserves to feel proud and be praised.
What did you think about this story? Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation? Tell us all about it in the comments below!
The commenters praised the girl for her actions and her dad for being a great parent, as many children are nowhere near as prepared for such situations
