Therapy for First Responders
Whether it’s been days or decades since your service, many first responders struggle with sleep, images or feelings about past calls, and relationships. Maybe you are in conflict with your spouse and children, irritable with all the stupid people, tired of putting on the mask of happiness, feeling the weight of the world’s grief on your shoulders. You may feel heavy, withdrawn, disconnected, and weary.
You may have compartmentalized effectively on the job, but perhaps too well — now it is hard to recognize yourself anymore. Who are you now?
You may not be sure if therapy is the right thing for you, or maybe you’ve had or heard of some bad experiences. You don’t want to take the spot from someone else who really needs it.
Hear Me Out:
The people you love most need you at your best. It is natural as a responder to help others first when they are hurting, but modeling resilience and well-being will create a ripple effect. Plus, what you learn you can share with others.
You know this from your leadership experience. Exceptional leaders are proactive, accountable, honorable, courageous, and committed. They lead by example, for the betterment of those around them. And they serve with heart.
Your family is your team now.
Let’s talk about your seat at the table.
How can therapy help?
In therapy, we spend time talking about your service, your struggles, your background, and your goals. We connect how traumas from your past can cause the struggles you are currently having, no matter how long ago they may have occurred. Therapy is often a combination of processing past traumas and incorporating new skills to improve relationship dynamics and regulate mood. You will learn how to:
Recognize and articulate how you got here.
Reduce conflict and rebuild communication with your spouse, children, and other family members.
Rediscover joy and connection in the moments that matter.
Remain emotionally engaged, without lashing out or shutting down.
Restore trust in self and others.
Reconnect with friends and civilian society.
Recalibrate your nervous system, better balancing your vigilance with intuition.
Individual therapy, exposure therapy, and intensives are available for this type of work.
Become the partner, parent, and person you want to be.
It is possible to live a life without anger or overwhelm, to feel more connected to yourself and loved ones, and to lead with heart again while keeping your edge. We can start in the therapy room.
You want a therapist who understands the unique demands of trauma exposure, relationships, and disaster response. I have been an active member in Veteran-led Team Rubicon, leading strike teams and C&G teams while deployed to disaster zones. I addition, I helped build and expand their wellness progams. I am married to a Purple Heart combat veteran, and have let my Special Forces Green Beret stepfather talk me into dumb shit like climbing Mt. Rainier and biking 200-mile races. My current career requires strong compartmentalization skills coupled with deep emotional connection, to my clients as well as my spouse and children.
I have built my career around understanding and treating service professionals leading with heart and keeping their edge. In my office, you do not need to worry about dark humor, sailor language, or shielding me from graphic trauma. You are in good hands.