CRISIS DEESCALATION INTERVENTION Thrapsimis 2017 By Ereni Thrapsimis

CRISIS DE-ESCALATION & INTERVENTION Thrapsimis 2017 By: Ereni Thrapsimis

WHAT DOES CRISIS DE-ESCALATION INVOLVE? De-Escalation involves: identifying a potential crisis; assessing the situation in terms of personal strengths and weaknesses; identifying the student’s needs; identifying environmental factors; developing an intervention strategy; and applying an intervention that decreases risk of harm Thrapsimis 2017

CRISIS PREVENTION v In crisis intervention with children and young people, the most important tool that adults have is ourselves. o What can I do? o What can I change? o Demonstrate building relationships v Have Emotional Competence: o Be aware of personal goals, values & beliefs o Understand cultural & ethnic differences o Demonstrate self-regulation skills o Know your own personal triggers Thrapsimis 2017

CRISIS PREVENTION (CONTINUED) v A Setting Condition is defined as anything that makes challenging behavior more or less likely to occur. 1. A positive organizational culture 2. A calming physical environment 3. Classroom instruction, activities, and routines 4. Treat each student as an individual 5. Encourage positive relationships v “If you can predict the behavior, then you can prevent the behavior. ” Thrapsimis 2017

SUPPORTING STUDENTS IN BEHAVIORAL CRISIS Schools must be prepared to manage student behavior in the event of a behavioral crisis to ensure the safety of all students and staff. In order to provide the student in crisis with the necessary supports and to enable the student and staff to return to their routine and schedule, schools are encouraged to utilize support techniques and strategies, such as the ones taught in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention for Schools (TCIS) and Life Space Crisis Intervention (LSCI). If the classroom teacher or the responding staff member is unable to de-escalate the behavior, the teacher/staff member should seek assistance from staff members trained in crisis de-escalation. Thrapsimis 2017

WHEN DOES A CRISIS OCCUR? v A crisis occurs when a student’s inability to cope results in a change in behavior. Thrapsimis 2017

BEHAVIORAL CRISIS Behaviors Feelings & Needs *All behavior has meaning therefore, behavior reflects needs. Thrapsimis 2017 Pain-based behavior includes: §Aggression §Impulsive outbursts §Running away §Self-injury §Defiance §Inability to regulate emotions §Trauma re-enactment

CRISIS INTERVENTION The Goals of Crisis Intervention are to: 1. Support environmentally and emotionally to reduce stress and risk 2. Teach students better ways to cope with stress Assessing the Situation: Self-awareness is a key element in a crisis situation. 4 key questions that we should ask ourselves when confronted with a behavioral crisis situation are: 1. What am I feeling now? 2. What does this student feel, need, or want? 3. How is the environment affecting the student? 4. How do I best respond? Ø Manage the environment to neutralize potential triggers Ø Engage the student and provide emotional support Ø Exercise self-control over own feelings Thrapsimis 2017

CRISIS DE-ESCALATION Goal of De-escalation: 1. Provide immediate support to reduce emotional intensity 2. Resolve the immediate crisis 3. Keep the student in the immediate class/activity Thrapsimis 2017

CRISIS DE-ESCALATION (CONTINUED) Do ü Identify & Validate student’s feelings ü Remember the importance of body language & facial expressions ü Use a calm tone of voice Don’t X- Yell back, or say statements like “calm down” or “you’re being bad” X- Engage in a power struggle X- Use behavior support techniques Thrapsimis 2017

UNDERSTANDING AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIORS Understanding Aggressive Behaviors 1. Reactive Aggression – Emotions are dominant 2. Proactive Aggression – Cognitions are dominant Immediate response priorities: Reactive Aggression Proactive Aggression • Safety • Understanding & support • Remove or reduce stimulus • Safety • Containment & negotiation • Engagement & reasoning Ongoing response priorities: Reactive Aggression • Teach coping skills • Teach self-regulation skills • Anger management Proactive Aggression • Teach appropriate thinking, values, & social skills • Reward socially appropriate behavior, Thrapsimis 2017 not anti-social behavior

MANAGING THE CRISIS Remove the potential trigger to violence by: • Never touching an angry & potentially violent person • Avoid any aggressive moves & proactive statements • Avoiding a power struggle & counter-aggression • Removing others who might trigger the violence (body language is critical) Remove the target by: • Asking the targeted person to leave • If it’s you, reminding the student of your relationship or leaving the situation & asking a “neutral” staff to manage the incident Avoid the weapon by: • Discreetly removing objects • Maneuvering away from weapons • Staying a safe distance away Decrease the level of stress or motivation by: • Using your relationship • Actively listening to identify feelings • Removing the audience • Using co-regulation strategies (reactive aggression) • Offering alternative, non-aggressive ways to achieve goals (proactive aggression) Thrapsimis 2017

MANAGING THE CRISIS Activity: It is physical education time and all the boys are outside playing kickball. There is a disagreement between Leroy and Josh as to whether the ball touched Leroy or not and whether or not he is “out. ” Leroy is getting more and more angry and picks up a large stick and starts waving it at Josh is chasing his around. 1. a) What kind of aggression is Leroy exhibiting? _______ b) How do we know this? _________ 2. a) b) c) d) What are the elements of this potentially violent situation? Trigger: _______ Target: ________ Weapon: _______ Level of stress or motivation: ____________ 3. What element would be the easiest to remove in order to reduce the risk of violence? ________ Thrapsimis 2017