How to Make a Crisis Intervention Training Plan for Anger Management

The term crisis intervention refers to techniques used by mental-health professionals to assist people in crisis. Crisis intervention often involves short-term interventions aimed to help people facing trauma, intense stress or change. Anger management is a way for people to learn about their anger. Anger-management skills are often taught in either group or individual counseling scenarios. In these groups, counselors help people find ways to cope by learning about triggers to their anger. Training in crisis intervention can help anger-management counselors, especially since people who have a difficult time with anger may be more likely to escalate into crisis.

Instructions

• 1

  Learn about different types of crises and their causes. A crisis is considered a situation in which an individual has lost effective problem-solving skills. When working with people with anger-management issues, be prepared to help in any type of crisis. Crises include any life-threatening situations as well as: sexual assault, criminal victimization, medical illness, psychiatric problems, loss or change in relationships and suicidal or homicidal thoughts.

  By recognizing the type of crisis, you will be able to make a clear assessment and offer the person the help that is needed. When you see signs that a person is in crisis, ask her about it. Try to determine what circumstances created the crisis and how she is responding to it.

• 2

  Ascertain reactions to the crisis and assess for safety. The most important thing you can do when a client is in crisis is to assess safety. Make sure that he is currently safe wherever he is at the moment and that he will be safe in the near future.

  An effective safety assessment includes looking for suicidal or homicidal thoughts, and looking for psychiatric extremes -- such as mania -- that may reduce impulse control. If the person is in imminent harm to himself or others, call the police or get him to the nearest emergency room.

• 3

  Offer support. Although the primary concern is safety, a time of crisis is also an opportunity for change and growth. As a counselor, you show the client that she can lean on you at this time and that you are there to help her through this. You should also help the client to look at how she's currently coping with events in her life, and why she's coping in this way. If you can help her to gain insight into her current situation and control over it, then much of her feelings of being in "crisis" and out of control may be alleviated.