Thankyou to all fire, ambulance, police, SES and other first responders. You are not alone, your community may not always understand but we stand with you. Please speak up if you are going thru a rough patch, strength comes when we stand as one because if one falls, we all fall. Blessings from Australia, Dot.
30-year veteran here firefighter EMT and Hazmat specialist and I'm going to say it I have post-traumatic stress disorder stay safe brothers and sisters
I spent 15 years on the job as a paramedic firefighter and as a LEO (city and then Fed). I was also a volunteer CISM counselor. If ***ANY*** of you know someone who is having a tough time, if they still wake up years later and hear the radios or smell the smoke.... please please get help. There is no shame in that whatsoever. There are thousands of us all over the country that are happy and willing to help you ** it's not important that you got lost on the way home, but it is important that you get home. **
As a teenager I don't full understand but what i do and is trauma dealing with my PTSD. So I want you and other first responders to know... You are never alone and I support you and never give up
This made me cry because my dad was a firefighter he past away with sickness and my neighbor was an police officer he died in a car crash and this video remind me of them thank you so much for this video
After 5 years on the job, I started having some issues. I went to command for advice and was told “Man the f*ck up or get the f*ck out”. I “manned up” for another 5 years. I had reached my limit. I was diagnosed with PTSD in 2006. I fought the battles and like the rest of us, always wishing we would win the war. I did good for many years, until last year 2022 when my PTSD reared its ugly head again. With the help of my service dog, my psychologist, and my wonderful wife who is now working toward her PhD to help first responders, I am fighting this monster again. Brothers and Sisters you’re not alone! We’ve lost too many over the years. Talk to your partner, someone who retired from the job, a military veteran. It doesn’t matter what color stripe is on your flag we are all part of the same tribe. We see and have seen what the rest of the world couldn’t bear to. You are not alone! You are family! It’s okay to not be okay.
None of us will ever be as strong as all of us! We need to end the stigma that still exist in many agencies and recognize that asking for help is not weakness but strength.
My Dad is a combat veteran of the Vietnam War, I am a firefighter and EMT, and in course the course of my duties there have been times where I have been shot, even wounded once, and lost my best partner to line of duty GSW in the same incident, And I not afraid to admit I have PTSD, not a day goes by where I don’t see my partner face, and hear his last words the second my eyes close. The only way that I survive this struggle every day is with the support of my dad who knows what I have been through as his own first hand experiences from combat in Vietnam. One of the most powerful moments I have shared with my Dad is one time we were walking out to the car to go to dinner together and car backfired, next thing we knew we both had our hands on the other’s shoulder ready to push our buddy into cover behind the car. I will never forget that moment.
17yrs between FD & EMS and it never gets easier. Fight the stigma. You’re not broken. And you’re not alone. I didn’t know that years ago and gave up. I’m a suicide survivor and still struggle daily with nightmares, depression, and periods of severe anxiety. Never stop fighting. And never forget you’re not alone. We are a broken bunch, but we family through and through. We’ve got your back. Never. Give. Up.
I've been in EMS for 30 yrs now all 911, I'm currently working in our departments EAP. I really couldn't take seeing how we really dont with this issue and I couldn't stand to watch my co workers suffer anymore so I wanted to turn my attention to my co workers. PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT GO IT ALONE! Get help talk to someone, if your department doesnt have an EAP go to a therapist, and if you see one of your co workers exhibiting odd behavior or drinking to much or using drugs speak up, you help no one trying to cover it up. My hear goes out to all providers suffering in silence, please just go talk with someone. You are not alone!!!
Thanks for posting this video!So true and recognizable…I’ve been a paramedic for more than 32 years now,working in the Netherlands at the ambulance service.We all carry a heavy mental load,no matter what country we are working.Hats off to you,James,for making and sharing this impressive video.Greetings from Holland!
Been in EMS since 1985, Paramedic since 1996. Over the years, stuff gets through your "shields" or "armor". Couple of years back, saw an exhibit of Daniel Sundhal's work at an EMS convention...I was in tears in minutes. That's when I realized how much I had been affected. Counseling helps.
After 9 years of doing the job on the ground and air it was time for me to go for the sake of my mental health and family. I’m in corporate America now and I know the feeling you’re talking about well.
Same here brother. I left and came back before I quit for good because the second time around, I realized the weight of what I saw was killing me. Stay in the fight !
That's one thing I appreciated hearing from one of our Basic EMT class leaders recently. Was instead of asking who in the class had thought about suicide. He was honest and said that he had thought about it and said that probably a lot of people had in the class. But to also ask for help if we do get to feeling like that. Especially when we all came from different departments and the Coroner's office that are doing the class.
Thanks, I was hard as Granite.. Then slowly I started caring and the Granite started to crack. When I was in the system I could out run the Demons, but now they have fought up to me. out of the system 3 yr's now and the still seek in.
But when have to hang up your gear and walk away for your own mental health and save your own family....you are looked down on by those that remain in the field....you get the wimp tag, the crazy tag....you can't win.
Going through a traumatic experience from a medical call I was on still struggling a lot but I know it will be okay I tried my best and that's all I could do
myself and 4 of my siblings are in fire/ems. Oldest is almost 21and youngest being 12 in the Jr program. It isn't a job people on the outside understand, but we do, and we wouldn't have it any other way.
I've been off the ambulance 4 years. I'm stuck by myself. Civilians have no clue and I'm no longer active so no longer belong to first responders. Just an outsider to everyone except the ghost.
Although I don’t work as a ff or paramedic or leo I work as a ect emergency care technician in a er and I tell you this ptsd its in ff paramedics emts and Leo’s but it’s also in myself nurses and doctors alike we all have one common goal do what’s best for the patient I’ve learned throughout the 4 years I’ve done this tho Sadly you can’t save everyone and that sticks with you forever until you die hopefully tho to all you out there you seek the help you need and we can all get through it together ❤️.
The worst thing is the aloness. EMT, 12 hours nights. Whenever I tell my family (18yo live with my parents, pay rent and all that jazz) that I'm going to work a few extra shifts on my days off. I tell them it's for the money... that's not true; I just need the rush of working, doing what I do best. And especially.. I don't want to be alone at night. It makes me feel isolated and all I think about is stuff at work. I need to be with a partner... on my box, doing what I do... not alone in my room thinking about the past. Yet here I am.. off duty and alone at 0400 watching this fricken video 😐 Stay safe guys... may your coffee stay cold, your sandwitch half eaten, and your diesal below half ✌😉
I'm still alone😭. Counselor doesn't help and no one to talk about it eather. I was in fire and EMS and still have nightmares and flashbacks. I'm just alone and it hurts and sucks. I'm just alone just me
My younger brother lost his fight with PTSD last night I found him hanging and cut him down and started cpr but to late if anyone needs help ask for call someone don't do your family that way he was a firefighter emt for 12yrs
the real problem is that your "brothers" are not there.... when the job beats you down until you cant hardly walk and you cant do the job anymore.... they will turn their backs just like everyone else does.
And if you are the calm voice in the storm (dispatcher)? Still reach out. After 36 years in the truck and the air and then the chair now retired. Trust me deal with issues from the job when you are still the job. After you live its much harder.
Thankyou to all fire, ambulance, police, SES and other first responders. You are not alone, your community may not always understand but we stand with you. Please speak up if you are going thru a rough patch, strength comes when we stand as one because if one falls, we all fall. Blessings from Australia, Dot.
20 years in EMS. I have been here many times. Thank you for posting this. I still cry when I am alone.
Hold that chin high brother, we'll all turn out alright
Me too 33 years in.
Also 20 years in EMS. 11 years ago, I was at an MCI with 25 dead and 135 injured. I was ready to give up EMS. I'm still at it.
I might not be EMS, but I am here now because of you. I cant thank you all enough ❤
30-year veteran here firefighter EMT and Hazmat specialist and I'm going to say it I have post-traumatic stress disorder stay safe brothers and sisters
Thank you for you very much dit for your service abd god bless you
I feel you man god be with you in thank u for your service in the lives u saved in the sacrifices u did
You are in my prayers brother. You are a True American Her
Makes me proud of my husband and the lives he has saved
I spent 15 years on the job as a paramedic firefighter and as a LEO (city and then Fed). I was also a volunteer CISM counselor.
If ***ANY*** of you know someone who is having a tough time, if they still wake up years later and hear the radios or smell the smoke.... please please get help. There is no shame in that whatsoever. There are thousands of us all over the country that are happy and willing to help you
** it's not important that you got lost on the way home, but it is important that you get home. **
As a teenager I don't full understand but what i do and is trauma dealing with my PTSD. So I want you and other first responders to know... You are never alone and I support you and never give up
What if you dont know how
I'm a fire fighter and it's hard sometimes to get back out there after somethings we see but the pride and love for helping people out weights it
This made me cry because my dad was a firefighter he past away with sickness and my neighbor was an police officer he died in a car crash and this video remind me of them thank you so much for this video
After 5 years on the job, I started having some issues. I went to command for advice and was told “Man the f*ck up or get the f*ck out”. I “manned up” for another 5 years. I had reached my limit. I was diagnosed with PTSD in 2006. I fought the battles and like the rest of us, always wishing we would win the war. I did good for many years, until last year 2022 when my PTSD reared its ugly head again. With the help of my service dog, my psychologist, and my wonderful wife who is now working toward her PhD to help first responders, I am fighting this monster again. Brothers and Sisters you’re not alone! We’ve lost too many over the years. Talk to your partner, someone who retired from the job, a military veteran. It doesn’t matter what color stripe is on your flag we are all part of the same tribe. We see and have seen what the rest of the world couldn’t bear to. You are not alone! You are family! It’s okay to not be okay.
None of us will ever be as strong as all of us! We need to end the stigma that still exist in many agencies and recognize that asking for help is not weakness but strength.
My Dad is a combat veteran of the Vietnam War, I am a firefighter and EMT, and in course the course of my duties there have been times where I have been shot, even wounded once, and lost my best partner to line of duty GSW in the same incident, And I not afraid to admit I have PTSD, not a day goes by where I don’t see my partner face, and hear his last words the second my eyes close. The only way that I survive this struggle every day is with the support of my dad who knows what I have been through as his own first hand experiences from combat in Vietnam.
One of the most powerful moments I have shared with my Dad is one time we were walking out to the car to go to dinner together and car backfired, next thing we knew we both had our hands on the other’s shoulder ready to push our buddy into cover behind the car. I will never forget that moment.
17yrs between FD & EMS and it never gets easier. Fight the stigma. You’re not broken. And you’re not alone. I didn’t know that years ago and gave up. I’m a suicide survivor and still struggle daily with nightmares, depression, and periods of severe anxiety. Never stop fighting. And never forget you’re not alone. We are a broken bunch, but we family through and through. We’ve got your back. Never. Give. Up.
The Beachbum Medic what happens when your “family” turns their back on you?
I've been in EMS for 30 yrs now all 911, I'm currently working in our departments EAP. I really couldn't take seeing how we really dont with this issue and I couldn't stand to watch my co workers suffer anymore so I wanted to turn my attention to my co workers. PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT GO IT ALONE! Get help talk to someone, if your department doesnt have an EAP go to a therapist, and if you see one of your co workers exhibiting odd behavior or drinking to much or using drugs speak up, you help no one trying to cover it up. My hear goes out to all providers suffering in silence, please just go talk with someone. You are not alone!!!
Thanks for posting this video!So true and recognizable…I’ve been a paramedic for more than 32 years now,working in the Netherlands at the ambulance service.We all carry a heavy mental load,no matter what country we are working.Hats off to you,James,for making and sharing this impressive video.Greetings from Holland!
I’ve been fire and ems. I love it. Every minute. But whether you admit it or not, it affects you. This hits home.
Been in EMS since 1985, Paramedic since 1996. Over the years, stuff gets through your "shields" or "armor". Couple of years back, saw an exhibit of Daniel Sundhal's work at an EMS convention...I was in tears in minutes. That's when I realized how much I had been affected. Counseling helps.
Every job I have since I left EMS, I feel worthless and under appreciated. It is so hard to leave it. 😪 It always feels like I am not doing enough.
After 9 years of doing the job on the ground and air it was time for me to go for the sake of my mental health and family. I’m in corporate America now and I know the feeling you’re talking about well.
Same here brother. I left and came back before I quit for good because the second time around, I realized the weight of what I saw was killing me. Stay in the fight !
From a former FF/EMT..... Thank You
That's one thing I appreciated hearing from one of our Basic EMT class leaders recently. Was instead of asking who in the class had thought about suicide. He was honest and said that he had thought about it and said that probably a lot of people had in the class. But to also ask for help if we do get to feeling like that. Especially when we all came from different departments and the Coroner's office that are doing the class.
Thank you.... Iv been there after 30 yrs EMS, I thought I was alone. Thank you
Art Lehr your never alone man if u need help ask for it it helps
Art Lehr you are never alone e mail me zachmorrow22@gmail.com this for anyone
Thanks, I was hard as Granite.. Then slowly I started caring and the Granite started to crack.
When I was in the system I could out run the Demons, but now they have fought up to me. out of the system 3 yr's now and the still seek in.
No way Brother. We got your six. Put it down.
Paramedic034 lehr As a paramedic Brother you are
Never a alone
Thank you. I'm glad I'm not alone
No brother. You are not
I have only been in EMS for 3 very rough years. This video is amazing! Thanks for making this.
Time in service makes no difference. 1 day or 40 years...reach out!
your making my eyes sweat guys. I've been in the fire service for 6 year.
Current EMT and 2 years of volunteer Firefighter work this video helps thanks for posting this
But when have to hang up your gear and walk away for your own mental health and save your own family....you are looked down on by those that remain in the field....you get the wimp tag, the crazy tag....you can't win.
Jerry Touchstone Maybe back in the old days. Thankfully, PTSD has been accepted across the country in recent years and people are more aware of it.
Thank you I'm so there, right now.
I am teaching a continuing education class in March about PTSD. May I play this video during the class? I would give you full credit.
Sometimes at night I see the eyes of those you save and the ones you couldnt,
Going through a traumatic experience from a medical call I was on still struggling a lot but I know it will be okay I tried my best and that's all I could do
I live near pittsburg so glad you made this people just don't understand
myself and 4 of my siblings are in fire/ems. Oldest is almost 21and youngest being 12 in the Jr program. It isn't a job people on the outside understand, but we do, and we wouldn't have it any other way.
Thank you for this
This si wonderful! I hope you had a Spanish version!
I've been off the ambulance 4 years. I'm stuck by myself. Civilians have no clue and I'm no longer active so no longer belong to first responders. Just an outsider to everyone except the ghost.
My husband is a retired fire captain. 🚒🙏👩🚒
Although I don’t work as a ff or paramedic or leo I work as a ect emergency care technician in a er and I tell you this ptsd its in ff paramedics emts and Leo’s but it’s also in myself nurses and doctors alike we all have one common goal do what’s best for the patient I’ve learned throughout the 4 years I’ve done this tho Sadly you can’t save everyone and that sticks with you forever until you die hopefully tho to all you out there you seek the help you need and we can all get through it together ❤️.
Thank you for your service, brother.
Quentin Turnage, EMT.
Miss you Greg, F/F EMT-I/2022😢😭
The worst thing is the aloness. EMT, 12 hours nights. Whenever I tell my family (18yo live with my parents, pay rent and all that jazz) that I'm going to work a few extra shifts on my days off. I tell them it's for the money... that's not true; I just need the rush of working, doing what I do best. And especially.. I don't want to be alone at night. It makes me feel isolated and all I think about is stuff at work. I need to be with a partner... on my box, doing what I do... not alone in my room thinking about the past. Yet here I am.. off duty and alone at 0400 watching this fricken video 😐
Stay safe guys... may your coffee stay cold, your sandwitch half eaten, and your diesal below half ✌😉
Understanding. Period. God Bless Much Love ©®
I'm still alone😭. Counselor doesn't help and no one to talk about it eather. I was in fire and EMS and still have nightmares and flashbacks. I'm just alone and it hurts and sucks. I'm just alone just me
BLINKING!
How many scenes is too many?
How ever many scenes I was on...
My younger brother lost his fight with PTSD last night I found him hanging and cut him down and started cpr but to late if anyone needs help ask for call someone don't do your family that way he was a firefighter emt for 12yrs
I am so sorry.
im very sorry for your loss i will keep you in my prayers
@@benjaminbrown1856 thank you he was one hell of a man
Song?
Biiggles why by rascal flat
I want to become a paramedic
the real problem is that your "brothers" are not there.... when the job beats you down until you cant hardly walk and you cant do the job anymore.... they will turn their backs just like everyone else does.
And if you are the calm voice in the storm (dispatcher)? Still reach out. After 36 years in the truck and the air and then the chair now retired. Trust me deal with issues from the job when you are still the job. After you live its much harder.
The only reason why I am still alive is I refuse to have another first responder wonder WHY
I cannot forget my what ifs but If I can prevent another from thinking them I will
Y'all just need your homie Jack Daniels.
RYET 37 if only I was a Jack Daniels Fan...
That creates other problems.