Lets talk about ways to boost morale after a disaster.
A disaster has hit, your family has been forced to leave the home, morale is down. Now what? There are a few subtle things that people can do to get the morale of the group back up.
1. A good hot meal - not a cold meal, not a cheap meal, not a quick and easy meal - a good, hot, meal. When your belling is empty, everyone will be in a bad mood.
2. Comfort foods - this usually includes stuff like chocolate. When we eat chocolate, our brains release endorphins, which makes us feel good. Chocolate contains anandamide, which activates certain pleasure zones in the human brain - the more we eat, the better we feel.
3. Personal Hygiene - simple stuff like being able to brush your teeth, take a shower, clean clothes, can improve a persons outlook on the situation. When people feel dirty all over, their overall mood can deteriorate.
4. A place to sleep - this is especially true for children. Having a place they can call their own, their own bed, their own little space, is important. Even if its an air mattress on the floor, providing people with a place to sleep is very important for their overall morale.
5. Socialisation - Letting people know that they are not alone, and that they have a support chain can improve their overall mood. Humans are social animals, we are designed to mingle wither others, to talk, to herd, to share experiences and thoughts with each other.
6. Card games and board games - help provide distractions to get their minds off the situation.
7. Camp fires / fire pits - fire has provided comfort for mankind for longer then anyone knows. It has provided us with warmth, a way to cook, and it keeps the boogeyman away at night.
8. Clean clothes - having a good hot shower is only going to take you so far, if you dont have clean clothes to put back on.
9. Communications with the outside world - being able to check on friends and family. When the members of your group are more worried about someone not in the group, bad thoughts are likely to consume them.
10. Allow people to vent - give them a shoulder to cry on, give them someone to talk to - and without judgement. Be there for the members of your group, and be there to listen to their concerns.
A disaster has hit, your family has been forced to leave the home, morale is down. Now what? There are a few subtle things that people can do to get the morale of the group back up.
1. A good hot meal - not a cold meal, not a cheap meal, not a quick and easy meal - a good, hot, meal. When your belling is empty, everyone will be in a bad mood.
2. Comfort foods - this usually includes stuff like chocolate. When we eat chocolate, our brains release endorphins, which makes us feel good. Chocolate contains anandamide, which activates certain pleasure zones in the human brain - the more we eat, the better we feel.
3. Personal Hygiene - simple stuff like being able to brush your teeth, take a shower, clean clothes, can improve a persons outlook on the situation. When people feel dirty all over, their overall mood can deteriorate.
4. A place to sleep - this is especially true for children. Having a place they can call their own, their own bed, their own little space, is important. Even if its an air mattress on the floor, providing people with a place to sleep is very important for their overall morale.
5. Socialisation - Letting people know that they are not alone, and that they have a support chain can improve their overall mood. Humans are social animals, we are designed to mingle wither others, to talk, to herd, to share experiences and thoughts with each other.
6. Card games and board games - help provide distractions to get their minds off the situation.
7. Camp fires / fire pits - fire has provided comfort for mankind for longer then anyone knows. It has provided us with warmth, a way to cook, and it keeps the boogeyman away at night.
8. Clean clothes - having a good hot shower is only going to take you so far, if you dont have clean clothes to put back on.
9. Communications with the outside world - being able to check on friends and family. When the members of your group are more worried about someone not in the group, bad thoughts are likely to consume them.
10. Allow people to vent - give them a shoulder to cry on, give them someone to talk to - and without judgement. Be there for the members of your group, and be there to listen to their concerns.
