This episode is short and maybe not so sweet, but a message that definitely NEEDS shared.
The audio is NOT great because I was on the treadmill when I recorded it, then recorded the intro/outro at different times.
The EPIDEMIC of first responder suicide is getting worse and worse. We see unimaginable things and do things that most people can never imagine doing. It is NORMAL that it will fuck with us. We are NOT some robot, even if it may feel like it at times and helps us get through a shift. We are HUMAN BEINGS with real human emotion, that if NOT expressed properly, can and does turn FATAL far too often!
With the news about LA County SD this week, my heart absolutely breaks. I CANNOT imagine losing four officers in a day at a department, especially not to suicide. What's crazy, is the families will most likely blame themselves or question if they missed something/should have done something different...the friends may do the same...but the department, more than likely is NOT going to question if there was more they could have or "should" have done OR they are going to do what several departments do and REACT after the fact to something that has needed addressed for YEARS!
I am not finger pointing or blaming. If someone wants to commit suicide, they are going to find a way to do it. BUT, there are things we can all be on the lookout for and we MUST have the damn guts to "see something, say something," like we tell the public to do.
We are very good, as a profession, telling others how to handle their problems and solving their problems for them...but we seem to NOT be so great at doing the same for ourselves/our employees.
WE HAVE GOT TO DO BETTER!
Make mental wellness checks MANDATORY. Officers, DO THEM and stop saying, "I'm fine," when you're not. It is okay NOT to be okay and to need a freaking break! Reach out and check on each other..."I got your six" isn't just for protecting each other from the bad guys...sometimes we have to protect ourselves from ourselves...EVEN if we weren't trained to!
If you are struggling with ANYTHING and it is feeling like too much to bear or like the world would be better without you...I can ASSURE you...it is NOT! If you don't trust the EAP, I get it! Reach out to the resources below...PLEASE!
Suicide Hotline - 988
COPLINE - 1-800-267-5463 (Calls answered by retired LEOs who've been vetted and trained to handle such calls)
Please don't choose a PERMANENT "solution" to a TEMPORARY problem.
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See you Next Shift
