May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 40

SELF - DEFENSE
that are high-energy or competitive
in nature, such as sports programming.
These activities provide
countless wellness benefits - including
exercise, socialization, access
to play and more. But when
energy levels run high, emotions
may run high as well. When this
situation arises, there are some deescalation
techniques
Snell
says
park and recreation professionals
can keep in their back pocket to
bring the environment back to stasis
and ensure everyone feels safe.
For example,
people's boundaries, " asking questions
is a great intervention strategy, "
she explains. " In psychological
terms, it's known as pattern interrupt.
They have to use a different
part of their brain to answer you. "
Questions can include things like
" What seems to be the problem? "
or even something unrelated to the
situation, such as " Do you know
what time it is? "
When employing this tactic, it's
if someone begins
yelling or encroaching on other
We can prevent most difficult situations
from becoming dangerous by being
aware, using our voice and setting
boundaries.
important to remain calm, " which
is not always easy when you're
dealing with someone who is very
escalated, angry, frustrated or maybe
even fearful, " she says. " But we
have to try to keep our energy low
because we don't want to amp the
energy up and up. " In addition to
asking questions, Snell says we can
offer firm but empathetic responses,
such as, " I see you're really upset.
I understand; I would be upset
too. We want to take care of this.
Let's go talk over here. "
Physical Self-Defense
Fortunately, we can prevent most
difficult situations from becoming
dangerous by being aware, using
our voice and setting boundaries.
" The majority of self-defense
is non-physical, " says Snell. " It's
what we do on a daily basis to set
our boundaries, speak up for ourselves,
to be aware of our environment
and take steps if we feel like
our intuition has been sparked. "
However, in the rare case that
an encounter does become dangerous,
the next step is to assess what
40 Parks & Recreation | MAY 2 0 2 3
| PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G

May 2023 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2023 - Parks & Recreation

May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - Intro
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - Cover1
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - Cover2
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 1
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 2
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 3
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 4
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 5
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 6
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 7
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 8
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 9
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 10
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 11
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 12
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 13
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 14
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 15
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 16
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 17
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 18
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 19
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 20
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 21
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 22
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 23
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 24
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 25
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 26
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 27
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 28
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 29
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 30
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 31
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 32
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 33
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 34
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 35
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 36
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 37
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 38
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 39
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 40
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 41
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 42
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 43
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 44
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 45
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 46
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 47
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 48
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 49
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 50
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 51
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 52
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 53
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 54
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 55
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - 56
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - Cover3
May 2023 - Parks & Recreation - Cover4
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2021
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