"Our first responders place themselves in harm's way each and every day to ensure everyone can go about living their lives in safety. But often, first responders are not afforded the same wellbeing. The career has a cost, and it is carried by each and every working and retired first responder, as well as their families. The career is one of daily nervous system activation, and we retire with some staggering statistics: police officers die, on average, twenty years before civilians. We increase our likelihood of passing away only five to ten years after retirement because our job means stepping up, recognizing that freedom is not free, and accepting the responsibility to shoulder the weight of protecting society.

Each year, more officers die by suicide than are attacked on the street. These brave men and women deserve access, without stigma, to resources that help them remain healthy. It is time to focus on the physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, social, occupational, environmental, and financial domains of wellness. First responders need and deserve access to help when they need it. A healthy and resilient officer is one who has found balance within all of the domains of wellness."

Lieutenant Sarko Gergerian

"Officers start their careers at the academy learning the skills to keep them physically alive. They learn how to protect themselves from physical wounds by developing sound tactics, good driving skills and even verbal de-escalation techniques. Physical wellness is emphasized through an intensive fitness program and recruits are rewarded for being in peak physical shape. 

However, very little time is spent teaching the hidden dangers, the psychological and emotional wounds the job can inflict. There is little acknowledgement that more officers die by suicide than lose their lives in the line of duty. As a profession, we must acknowledge the psychological and emotional dangers in the same manner we talk about the physical dangers of the job. Until we remove the stigma and have open and honest discussions about suicide, we will never be able to truly address the impact it has on our officers and our profession."

Captain Michael Harvey (Ret.)