Health care
BY DANICA LLOYD
James Moyer joined the Cy-Fair Fire Department as a paramedic in 2021. Coming from a smaller department, the surge in call volume began to weigh on him. “It started not only aecting me at work, ... but it started bleeding into my home life as well, where I just felt burned out,” he said. Moyer was put on a months-long waitlist to see someone equipped to counsel rst responders, but he said the counseling he received was life-changing. Today, as the CFFD’s wellness o cer, Moyer oversees the THRIVE program, which includes peer support as well as counseling for members and their families—all to build resilience amid the tragedies experienced on the job. First responders nd mental health support
Why it matters
U.S. rst responder suicide deaths
Law enforcement
Fireghters
EMS
Most people experience two to three traumatic incidents in their lifetime, Moyer said, while rst responders typically see several of these events in a single shift. “Working in our eld, while we’re responding to the general public’s worst day, we may have six to 10 worst days that we experience externally by providing support to those in the public,” he said. As a result, rst responders deal with elevated rates of anxiety, depression and suicide. Accord- ing to a 2018 study from the Ruderman Family Foundation, rst responders are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty. Since 2020, nearly 1,000 rst responders have died by suicide in the U.S., including 84 Texans,
250 200 100 150 50 0
2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
SOURCE: BLUE H.E.L.P.COMMUNITY IMPACT
according to Blue H.E.L.P., an organization that brings awareness to mental health issues for law enforcement ocers.
Did you know?
U.S. veteran suicide risk factors Risk factors documented in the year before veteran suicide deaths that occurred in 2020-2022:
Military veterans also see higher-than-average rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide. A December report from the U.S. Department of Veterans Aairs reported an average of 17.6 vet- erans died by suicide daily in 2022, and veterans accounted for 15.4% of U.S. adult suicides. Like rst responders, military combat veterans can become desensitized over time. Their trauma often leads to issues ranging from substance abuse and relationship problems to homelessness and incarceration, said Sarah Holland, a licensed mental health professional at Camp Hope. Since 2012, Camp Hope has oered veterans a safe space in Cy-Fair to process and learn to cope with the eects of their trauma.
Pain in the year prior to death 53.8%
“First responders are probably the ones that are in the most need [of mental health support], and they’re the ones that are probably the most hesitant to seek the help or realize
Sleep problems 51.4%
Recent decline in physical activity 34.3%
they need the help.” LEAH GOWIN, DIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH, CY FAIR FIRE DEPARTMENT
Relationship problems 33.1%
Hopelessness 30.4%
SOURCE: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRSCOMMUNITY IMPACT
The approach
focus on therapy for about ve months. Before leaving the program, veterans are set up for success with resume assistance, help getting a job or getting into school, or nding a place to live. Many have ended up working for Camp Hope after completing the program and turning their lives around, Holland said. “It’s amazing to see a guy be six years clean and sober and have come here in complete despair with no meaning, no hope,” she said.
understand, so you start to feel more isolated; you start to feel like you don’t belong,” she said. Camp Hope houses up to 80 veterans going through a six-to-nine-month program involving counseling, peer support and mentorship. The program starts with a 30-day “blackout,” getting veterans disconnected from their phones, families and the outside world so they can begin to connect with themselves, Holland said. From there, they learn about their PTSD and
When deployed, members of the military often don’t have the time, outlet or coping skills to process the trauma they’re experiencing, Holland said, and they often feel alone upon returning to life as a civilian. “We have that camaraderie; we have that brotherhood because we’ve gone through these experiences together. And then we exit the military, and we can’t relate to people anymore. You try to talk to a civilian and they don’t
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