The Thin Blue Lifeline - Amdur, Ellis

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Résumé :
The first section of this book is tactical: everything from field safety and strategic planning on one side, to honing your intuition to pick up early signs of danger on the other. In the second section of the book, the authors focus on us: what we can do to achieve a state of integrity and powerful calm. Rather than abstract pronouncements, they offer specific strategies, including a method of breathing for the purpose of maintaining one&rsquo...

Biographie:
Ellis Amdur received his B.A. in psychology from Yale University and his M.A. in psychology from Seattle University. He is both a National Certified Counselor and a State Certified Child Mental Health Specialist. Amdur has trained in various martial arts systems for the past fifty years, spending thirteen of these years studying in Japan. He is a recognized expert in classical and modern Japanese martial traditions and has authored three iconoclastic books on the subject, as well as one instructional DVD. Since his return to the U.S. in 1988, Amdur has worked in the field of crisis intervention as a pioneering instructor for law enforcement. He has written eighteen books on the subjects of crisis intervention, hostage negotiation and the art of psychotherapy, many with subject-matter expert co-writers, as well as several works of fiction. He is a dynamic public speaker and trainer who presents to people working in a variety of professions throughout the United States and internationally. He is noted for his sometimes-outrageous humor as well as his profound breadth of knowledge. His vivid descriptions of aggressive and mentally ill people and his true-to-life role-playing of the behaviors in question give participants an almost first-hand experience of facing the real patients in question. In addition, Amdur has developed a range of consultation services, as well as a unique style of assessment and psychotherapy. Amdur's professional philosophy can best be summed up as: The development of an individual's integrity and dignity is the paramount virtue. This can only occur when people live courageously, regardless of the circumstances, and take responsibility for their roles in making the changes they desire.

Sommaire:
s own center in crisis situations. They then move on to the heart of the book, discussing specific behaviors ranging from confusion and obsessive concerns to psychosis, mania and acute disorganization. In one very important section, they discuss interactions with opportunistic and manipulative individuals (at worst, those referred to as psychopaths), people who present a danger to the psychological and physical well-being of anyone with whom they come in contact. Amdur and Hutchings do not merely confine themselves to the important subject of despondent suicidal individuals who attempt to kill themselves. They also offer strategic interventions for parasuicidal individuals, those who either threaten to harm themselves, or repetitively do so, requiring almost constant involvement of police, hospitals and the mental health system. In one very important chapter, the authors discuss suicide-by-cop, where self-harm and interpersonal aggression are folded into the same act. They then move on to a discussion of anger and potentially violent behavior, whether directed at law enforcement officers or others. The authors give succinct information on how to immediately recognize different modes of aggression, whether displayed by adults, youth, or children, and then outline how to quickly and effectively implement de-escalation or control tactics best suited to deal with the type of aggression one is facing. Finally, in essential appendices, they present protocols on current information on positional and compression asphyxiation (authored by Dr. Gary Vilke), and a protocol, specific to police, on excited delirium (authored by Lieutenant Michael Paulus, ret.) Rather than abstract information, more useful in a consulting room than in the field, The Thin Blue Lifeline is tactically based, from start to finish. This book can function as the foundation of any law enforcement Crisis Intervention Team program, providing a comprehensive course of study of boots-on-the-ground encounters with emotionally disturbed individuals. In the same vein, the information in this volume provides core information on communication, which will be invaluable to any crisis/hostage negotiation team....