First Responders and Public Safety
First responders meet loss for a living, and over time, the weight of other people's worst days becomes their own. The same training that lets you run toward a scene can make it hard to feel, or to ask for help, when grief finally catches up. You may grieve people you barely knew, people you couldn't save, and the version of yourself that existed before the job changed you. This grief is real, it's heavy, and it is not a weakness.
National Resource
The Code Green Campaign: A first-responder-run nonprofit raising awareness of mental health struggles, including grief and loss, among EMS, fire, police, and dispatch personnel.
Recommended Reading
Bulletproof Spirit by Dan Willis: A first responder's essential resource for protecting and healing the mind and heart after repeated exposure to trauma, death, and loss on the job.
Grief & Support
IAFF Center of Excellence: A dedicated behavioral health treatment center for fire fighters and EMS professionals, providing care for post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, and the grief that follows critical incidents.
Currently in crisis?
If your grief has become a crisis, you feel unsafe, or you are thinking about harming yourself, immediate support is available.
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week anywhere in the United States, free, confidential, and ready for anyone experiencing emotional distress or grief.
If this is a life-threatening emergency, call 911 immediately.