First Responder

EMS, police, and firefighters, are often the first people to deal with incidents that pose significant threats to health and life. These work-related exposures and stressors result in an increased risk for mental health conditions, in particular, the presence of posttraumatic stress. The incidence of PTSD among first responders is considerably higher than in the general population. And, there is an elevated risk for suicide among first responders. There are, however, protective factors that can be learned and practiced.

By practicing to be resilient, we take greater control of our challenges and we can make our families more resilient, too. Resilience encourages using positive-coping skills to manage stress in an optimal way. These positive-coping skills are considered protective factors because our intent is to take a personal challenge and create a more positive and less stressful outcome. Protective factors include recommendations of the World Health Organization for suicide prevention. Our objectives, therefore, are to develop social support systems, positive-coping skills for resilience, self-esteem, self-efficacy (believing you are capable of reaching a goal), and problem solving skills. An entirely educational approach is used for learning resilience using the theme of the "Hero's Journey." Common to many epic stories, such as Star Wars, is the hero who, facing a challenge, goes on an adventure, is victorious, and returns as a transformed person. The Hero's Journey encourages us to recognize the importance of teamwork through a social support system. Like many sports, as we learn the game, we are also learning how to work as a team.

How do you implement this process? The Basic Resilience Exercises can be used for training at an agency level and have been used in academy, POST, and on-going service training. The learning is group focused though, minimally, two people can do the training together, such as two first responders or a first responder and family member. Solitary learning is not encouraged simply because social support is key to resilience.

The Basic Resilience Exercises uses Problem Based Learning (PBL) by applying positive-coping skills to create less stressful outcomes to our real life challenges. We title these skills Belief, Persistence, Strength, Trust, and Adaptability for our learning. Each positive-coping skill has three exercises, "Tell your story" to build on your prior successes, "Collaborate" to build problem solving skills while working on a real challenge with a companion, and "Transformation" to reflect or think about how you have changed after working with the exercises.

The Basic Resilience Exercises can be completed orally. Alternatively, writing responses can often help to better organize thinking. If you have limited time, then consider completing the Belief and Trust skills. Then, go to the Strength Skill and practice a relaxation exercise, such as diaphragmatic breathing. Though each skill is unique, the learning exercises for each skill are nearly the same. This is quite intentional. This repeating of exercises is intended to build confidence. This, in turn, strengthens the idea we can be resilient and work comfortably with others as we deal with real life challenges. In addition to Basic Resilience Exercises, supplemental materials are provided as learning and training aids.