By Dustin Van Sloten, member of the Mental Health Task Force
JONAH hosted an Emotional-CPR (eCPR) Training on March 30, 2024. Twenty local community members took advantage of this training offered by Certified eCPR Practitioners Lynn McLaughlin and Karen Iverson-Riggers of Ebb & Flow Connections Cooperative, a Wisconsin-based worker-owned cooperative that provides training, consultation, and listening spaces related to emotional wellness and connection.
Emotional CPR is an educational program designed to teach people to assist others through an emotional crisis by three simple steps:
C = Connecting
P = emPowering and
R = Revitalizing
JONAH brought this training to the Chippewa Valley to raise awareness for mental health and to train people to be able to walk alongside others going through a mental health crisis. Most people at some point in their lives go through a mental health crisis such as anxiety, depression, or loss. People can benefit from someone being by their side helping them get through the crisis.
Oftentimes, people respond to a person in crisis with immediate advice trying to fix the problem, when all the person wants is just someone to sit with them and listen and/or just be with them through the crisis. This training was very beneficial because it showed people how listening intently can be more effective than trying to fix the problem immediately. The learned listening technique can create a deep connection that can actually be beneficial to both sides.
According to their website (https://emotional-cpr.org/), the Connecting process of eCPR involves deepening listening skills, practicing presence, and creating a sense of safety for the person experiencing a crisis. The emPowering process helps people better understand how to feel empowered themselves as well as to assist others to feel more hopeful and engaged in life. In the Revitalizing process, people re-engage in relationships with their loved ones or their support system, and they resume or begin routines that support health and wellness which reinforces the person’s sense of mastery and accomplishment, further energizing the healing process.
This training was deeply impactful for me because I am one of those people who want to “fix” the problem immediately. I saw first-hand how using the eCPR technique can not only help the person going through the crisis, but also the person walking alongside them. It’s all about the connection. Feeling connected to the other person brings about trust, empathy, and a closeness that gives you a feeling of great joy and heartfelt compassion.
Lynn McLaughlin and Karen Iverson-Riggers were authentic and genuine. They shared stories of trauma in their lives and how using the eCPR technique helped them out of the struggle. This training can be beneficial to everyone. We all have experienced the feeling of needing help with a mental health crisis or have found ourselves in a situation where we have the opportunity to help others going through a crisis. It’s rarely going to be easy; however, this training can help you navigate through it and build a deep connection that is very powerful. The training was a 10/10!