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Stigma Free

Stigma?

 There  is a movement currently going on about stigma and mental illness. In  emergency services, if we admit to having a challenge, we do not want  our brothers and sisters looking at us in a different light. Why? Are we  not human? Who among us are perfect?


Part  of the Stigma Free movement should be understanding your challenges, as  well as other people's challenges. Sources indicate that "one-in-five  Americans live with a mental health condition." Think about that for a  minute; one-in-five. If you have five responders on a truck, one of them  may have a mental health issue. Twenty percent of your department may  have an issue. Are you or a member of your family or department one that  is living with it, but did not seek any help? Are we judging others  that have the courage to admit that they need some help?


Let's  look at some things that might be in our stations. There may be a  member who has lost someone so close to them that they will have a  difficult time making it through the upcoming holidays because they are  battling with depression as they grieve. There may be someone who is  still having challenges because of a really bad call and they may have  PTSD.


I  know people who are bi-polar, have addictions, in major depression, had  a stroke, etc. Should we just tell them to "suck it up, buttercup"? NO!  How would you want to be treated? What if it was your child or family  member?


Compassion goes a long way. Whatever mental issues they have does not identify them.

One  of my best friends is blind. I do not think of him as "Blind Steve". He  is just Steve and life goes on. He will tell me if he needs my  assistance. Other times I let him know about a situation coming up that  he may need to know about.


If  a person in your department has a substance abuse challenge, are you  going to just get rid of him from your department, or are you going to  be a brother and come along side of them and help to lead them to a  program that can assist them. The person may be a great responder BUT  they have a challenge and need help.


It  is perfectly alright to see a psychologist, psychiatrist, or doctor and  get the help that is needed. If you have physical challenges, hopefully  you go to the doctor and get help, so why not mental health? Why not  take the course Mental Health First Aid?


'Do  not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am  your God I will strengthen you, surely I will help you. Surely I will  uphold you with My righteous right hand.' - Isaiah 41:10 Do not keep  trying to make it on your own. God is with you during your struggles.  Seek out the help that you, a family member, or member of service may  need. Understand those who have the challenges. Let us remove the stigma  in emergency services. Let us first get the help that we need and  understand those who have mental health issues.


Let  emergency services be Stigma Free. Let us get to the point where the  stations are safe for all. Let us try to help those with mental health  issues.

Chaplain Didymus McHugh promotes Stigma Free for firefighters, law enforcement (police) and EMS.

Chaplain Didymus McHugh promotes Stigma Free for firefighters, law enforcement (police) and EMS.

Chaplain Didymus McHugh promotes Stigma Free for firefighters, law enforcement (police) and EMS.

The Unspoken Words in Emergency Services

We are all a family, brothers and sisters in  emergency services. Someone told me that we are a dysfunctional family  but we are a family nonetheless, and we are a tight group. But let me  ask you this, do we really pay attention to our brothers and sisters?  Can you tell when something is bothering someone on your truck or in  your station?


We  need to look out for our brothers and sisters so we all come home from a  call, but this also means when we are not on a scene as well. We need  to know each other enough to start seeing differences in behavior. Is  someone showing signs that critical incident stress is affecting them,  or is it (should I even think the words) depression or thoughts of dying  by means of suicide? So many of us do not want to ever say or hear the  words depression or suicide. I know that the usual response to someone  who is experiencing depression is “well get over it” or “just snap out  of it”. These are not helpful words.


There  are many things that can get someone to the point of depression. We can  have family, financial, or health issues. We may be experiencing  effects of critical incident stress or other things. Some medications,  which we have to take, or surgery that we have had may cause us to feel  depressed. But if we keep it to ourselves, we wallow in our own  self-pity and our challenges then have our permission to run our lives.  If we keep it and do not vent or ask for help, we put ourselves into our  own prison.


To  be a true brother, we need to care about each other. When people are  not acting their “normal”, you may want to ask the person “how are  things going?” Let’s face it, we are not the “normal” that society  thinks of when they think of normal. We appear to be a little off center  but that’s okay because that’s how emergency services is. Sometimes we  need to talk to others that can relate to us in our “normal” state.


One  challenge, that we have, is that we are the rescuers. We go into  burning buildings that nobody else would enter. We go into places of  chemical spills, we are used to rescuing everyone else. Sometimes we  have to remember that it is okay for us to ask to be rescued. If you are  having a code, can you perform CPR on yourself? So why think that you  can handle your depression or suicidal thoughts by yourself.


Remember,  we ARE family. There are people that are willing to listen and help you  get the help that you need. Have you tried your department chaplain of  the CISM team? The CISM team knows therapists that actually know our  culture. Hopefully, the people with depression will connect with a  therapist that can help them. Yes, I know that many times we want to  handle everything ourselves but there are times where it is okay to hang  up the hero cape and admit that we need help.


According  to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, it is estimated that  suicide is four times more likely to happen than a line of duty death.  Think on that. What do we see? We all have been exposed to people who  have attempted to die via suicide or have died by means of suicide.


There  are resources out there. Serve and Protect is a 24/7/365 crisis line  for emergency services, where you can also speak to therapists or  chaplains (serveprotect.org or 615-373-8000). But you also have the  National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (suicideprevetionlifeline.org or  800-273-TALK (8255)). Go on the website for the National Suicide  Prevention Lifeline and look at the signs so that you can notice some of  the warning signs or review the information for yourself, if you are  having challenges.


Many  of us are afraid of speaking the words “depression” or “suicide”, but  by not speaking these topics does not mean that they do not exist. We  use thermal imaging cameras to see hotspots in buildings to prevent a  fire in buildings. We do not have TIC’s to see what is going on in  people’s minds. We need to ask them and if we are the one going through  the depression or having thoughts of hurting ourselves, we need to not  be proud and keep it all to ourselves.


We  are brave enough to join the fire department in the first place, we  need to be brave enough to ask for help or help someone else get the  proper help.


Instead  of getting a CPR save or pulling someone out of a building and getting a  save, how would you feel about saving a brother or sister? We are  family. Don’t be afraid to discuss this issue, the life you save may be  your own.


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CFC Loud N Clear Foundation 

Supporting substance abuse and mental health recovery efforts in New Jersey

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