(This blog was originally posted on May 8, 2014)
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| Photo courtesy of Microsoft |
“Hello?
Hello!” When there was no answer, the thrum of persistent knocking. Finally,
the shrill sound of a ringing bell similar to noise of an old-fashioned alarm
clock rang once, twice. Then the cycle repeated; this time, the voice sounded
more plaintive, more panicked.
“Excuse
me? I think someone is stuck in one of the elevators,” I told the receptionist.
The
woman cocked her head in the direction of the elevators and picked up her
phone. “I’ll call security,” she told me with a calm smile.
It
seemed like ages until someone finally showed up to help get the passenger out,
although probably only a few minutes had passed from the time I alerted someone
about the stuck elevator until the problem was resolved. The whole time, I
battled my own wave of panic and concern for the person stuck inside while
sending these mental messages: “Help is coming. You will get out soon.” It was
3 p.m.—well past lunch-time—but what if he or she had not eaten anything since
breakfast? I knew from my hypnotherapy training and personal experience that hunger
and low blood-sugar levels can bring on or exacerbate anxiety and trigger
symptoms of nausea, dizziness and weakness. I have helped my clients work
through phobias that were created by subconsciously associating the physical
symptoms of having a low blood-sugar level with an object or some event going
on in their environment. Since the person in the stuck elevator was also
actually experiencing this event, it
would be reasonable if the person developed a legitimate fear of elevators
after today. What if he or she already had a phobia of elevators….? But, I was
getting ahead of myself.
Of course, the building’s security officers
showed up and got the person out of the elevator. He seemed no worse for wear
and was even laughing about what had happened. I wondered what I would or could
have done in his situation. Like this passenger, I would have called out for
help and activated the alarm, like he did. Then I would have worked on calming
down (and remaining calm) by doing diaphragmatic breathing so I could focus on
possible options to resolve my problem. Once I established that there was
cellular reception from where I was, I could call someone in the office I was
visiting in that building to let them know there was a problem with one of the
elevators and ask them to send help for me. Alternatively, I could have called
a friend or family member to look up the phone number of a general manager of
the building and raise the alarm. I could have even called 911.
I
think the thing that most disturbed me about the incident was other people’s
response to it—or lack of response.
Even if I was the only person who initially heard the person knocking and
calling for help, which I doubt, the alarm bell was very loud. The receptionist
didn’t seem too concerned when I told her that I thought someone was stuck in
an elevator; it was as if one or the other machine malfunctioned on a regular
basis and this was another daily inconvenience. People continued to walk past,
chatting on their mobile phones or with a friend. Some pressed the call button
to summon the other elevator to take them back downstairs. But no one seemed
particularly worried, curious about or interested in the shrill rings that cut
through the air every few seconds. It was like they didn’t want to get
involved. Maybe they didn’t, and that scares me more than the idea of being
stuck somewhere. I just find it very sad and disheartening that we can no
longer generally count on the kindness and awareness of strangers for help and
support during a crisis or an emergency.
Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified hypnotherapist based in
Southern California. She graduated with honors from the
Hypnosis Motivation Institute in 2005. For more information about
Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.
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