COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – The Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) is offering free mental health support to first responders across the state as May marks National Mental Health Awareness Month.
According to TEEX, research shows one in 10 first responders experiences post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), nearly three times the national rate. The report showed that police officers and firefighters are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty.
TEEX Public Safety Wellness Director Alisa McDonald said the constant exposure to trauma takes a serious toll on the body and mind.
“Your body, you have a fight, flight, freeze type of response, and when people are exposed to trauma over and over and over again, they get stuck in their reactionary system. So everything that’s around them is perceived as a threat,” McDonald said.
Most people will face two or three traumatic events in their entire lifetime. However, for first responders, that can happen in a single day.
McDonald explained how first responders could experience two to three traumatic events per day. She said the cumulative trauma affects their nervous system, the way they interact with friends and family, the way they see the world and leaves them hypervigilant around the clock.
Understanding the toll
During a sit-down interview, McDonald used the example of a crash on the side of the road to illustrate what first responders face.
“There’s a lot of things going on that we don’t realize, and part of it is not only just the fact that there’s either someone harmed or they’ve died in a crash, but also, the first responders are concerned about traffic back and forth and whether or not they’re at risk during that time period just working a scene,” McDonald said.
TEEX offers a class called Support That Saves that includes an activity called Same Incident, Different Perspective. The activity walks people through the perspective of the dispatcher, the first person on scene, firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, law enforcement and victim services.
According to TEEX, police officers and firefighters are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty.(kbtx)
The exercise shows how a critical incident affects each public safety professional working at a scene. First responders may work the same type of scene four times a day.
Breaking down barriers
McDonald said stigma, cost and a lack of counselors who understand first responder culture are the biggest barriers to getting help.
“I think a lot of them aren’t quite sure or don’t quite understand how beneficial mental health care can be for them. But also, they carry the thought that somebody’s going to judge me. I’m going to have my gun taken away. I’m going to be taken off the fire truck,” McDonald said.
She said public safety professionals struggle to find culturally competent counselors who understand first-responder issues. She said this profession is a specialty in the counseling world.
Free resources available statewide
TEEX offers a free three-day training class and free one-on-one counseling open to any first responder in Texas.
More than 650 first responders have gone through the peer support training in the last two years. More than 60 first responders are actively being seen at the TEEX counseling clinic.
TEEX offers free counseling to first responders across Texas.(kbtx)
The program uses a three-pronged approach: education, peer support and mental health resources.
“There’s a misconception that first responders don’t seek mental health or that they shouldn’t, but chances are the person they’re sitting next to or working with every day is already engaged in counseling,” McDonald said.
Some feedback from the Support That Saves class includes first responders saying they wish they had known about the program 30 years ago. Others realized they have more work to do before they can step into a peer support role.
The counseling center also serves as a training site for developing counselors who hope to specialize in treating first responders and public safety professionals. Plus. TEEX has an internship available to counselors in their internship or practicum.
Program expansion
McDonald came to TEEX from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), where she worked in a victim and employee support services role. She left DPS to join TEEX and help set up the Public Safety Wellness program.
The program was started by TEEX Director David Coatney, a former firefighter who saw many people struggle and is passionate about serving first responders in the state.
TEEX established an internal peer support team of a handful of people who can deploy to mass-casualty incidents or natural disasters. The team most recently deployed and responded to first responders in Kerrville last summer.
McDonald said she would like to expand services for counseling throughout the state. The program has a short waiting list, and her goal is to make sure nobody has to go on a waiting list and can get seen immediately.
She said she would like to have counselors in every region throughout Texas who specialize in treating first responders. The program is working on an advanced Support That Saves class for advanced skills for peer supporters, as well as a curriculum for counselors who would like additional training in treating first responders.
First responders can sign up for training or counseling at the TEEX Public Safety Wellness website. The program also accepts donations to expand services statewide. Donations will go toward hiring more counselors.
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