How would you get a hostile person's attention without touching them?

I can’t remember the details of this convo right now. I just remember I was talking with a woman who had anger issues. We were both going to a meeting for our church and one of the members was on the church’s land, but they had given her an eviction notice because she was a member of a certain religion that the church now did not tolerate. A number of us went to her small tent to make sure she was ok and to see if we could help her get the supplies she needed. She was very grateful and was willing to seek help. But then this woman who was a member of the church showed up and she was angry. After we talked to her and she calmed down and she finally let go of the knife that she had brought with her, she explained that she was afraid they were going to kick her out of the church. Going to church is something that she has to do. She goes to meetings, she goes to a counselor. It really has helped her, but she is afraid that if she is kicked out, the demons could attack her again. I know that isn’t a real thing, but it’s what she believes. She told us that if she were ever near someone who was of that religion that she would attack them. She has been that way since she was a child. Her father was a member of that religion. He had her and her two sisters do rituals to summon demons. She says that her sisters were taken by the demons, and she was possessed by them. She was sexually abused by her dad and other members of the church. She has PTSD. A few times she has attacked people who were not from that religion. She said that sometimes she gets near people and something inside her snaps. But today she was able to control herself. She only had the knife to protect herself. I asked her to walk with me for a minute and I walked her away from the tent, and the woman I was talking to and the woman who was being evicted. The woman with the knife said that she was hateful and that it would be better if everyone stayed away from her. I said, “What if someone was in danger and they needed your help?” She rolled her eyes and looked away and started walking away, and that’s when I put my hand on her arm. I only had that split second to think, but in that moment I knew that I had to touch her. I went on to tell her a story about how I met my children, and how she was a lot like my daughter. I told her how my daughter was also very hateful and angry at the world, and how my son was the same way. But she said that because of me, she now cares about people and is not afraid of them anymore, and he is the same way. I told her that I know she is hateful and hurt, but I also see the good in her. She has a good heart and it shows in the way she takes care of her friends. I told her that she was a protector and that was a very good person to be. I told her that if she spent time with me, then she would see that not everyone is her enemy, and maybe she could find some peace. She did spend time with me, and I helped her get a job at the company I work for, and over time she became a very caring person. She still has her moments when she is angry, but she never lets it get the best of her.<br><br>So, I know that you never touch a person with PTSD. You never grab them, or touch them, or stand behind them, or get to close to them. So, how would you get a hostile person’s attention without touching them?<br><br>This is for my story. This happened in my past, but my character in my story is doing the same thing. I need to know how she can do that without touching the person.