Responder Resilience

Throughout his 46 year career as a Fire Captain and Investigator, Patrick Wills had seen more than his share of trauma and death, but it wasn’t until he responded to a tragic fire that claimed the lives of three young sisters that he unknowingly descended into total PTSD. David and guest host Kim O’Neill speak with Pat, a veteran of the Long Beach Fire Department, as he shares the emotional toll o...

Retired L.E.O. and FBI agent Michael Van Meter is a well respected Law Enforcement Leader and an Addiction Recovery Expert. In this episode, he talks about the devastating effects of addiction on the public, himself, and his profession. Pulling from personal and professional experience, Michael shares thoughts on this complex, controversial subject. Michael puts it all out on the table, provides e...

Award-winning paramedic and educator Nick Paproski talks with David about a vital and elusive commodity: SLEEP. EMS workers, like all first responders and shift workers, are at risk for sleep deprivation and fatigue. When you are sleep deprived, your immune system may become compromised, your mood can be affected, and you are more prone to errors and accidents. There are many factors that contribu...

Peer support is an essential element of any emergency response team. This episode features an interview with Doug O'Rourke, a Lieutenant with the Hamden Fire Department, who also serves as the Director of the Connecticut Firefighter Peer Support Network. In this video, Doug talks about the organization and its mission. He discusses the importance of peer support in the fire service, and how a...

Pete Elste is a Danbury Police Officer who has become a leader in peer support and crisis intervention. In this episode Pete shares his story of addiction, restructuring his path to recovery, and staying grounded. Pete is a resilient leader who has proven that you can achieve anything you put your mind to, and is an inspiration for his peers and anyone struggling with addiction may be looking for...

In this episode, Bonnie and David interview Sara Beckert, National Fire Academy Instructor and founder of First Response Health and Wellness. Firefighters and other responders are constantly at risk for long term injury, and they suffer a higher rate of workplace injury than most US workers. First Response Health and Wellness offers a range of health and wellness programs suited for all first resp...

Ever had recurring stressful memories, nightmares, or emergency calls that re-activated a traumatic event? First Responder therapists Dr. Stacy Raymond and Bonnie Rumilly, LCSW will be talking about EMDR, a powerfully effective way to take the charge out of stressful memories and reprocess them. ​​First responders are often placed in situations where they come into contact with traumatic situation...

Sergeant Michael Sugrue has been on the front lines of the battle against duty induced trauma since he responded to a fatal officer involved shooting that instantly changed his whole world. The after effects of this traumatic incident began a journey where Michael experienced administrative betrayal and descended into a downward spiral affecting his work, his marriage, his integrity, and his healt...

We’ll be speaking with Steven Wilcox Director of Education for FrontlineCT about their first responder peer support program and the stigma around first responder mental health. Mental health issues are still infrequently discussed in the first responder community. The paramedic profession has a high rate of suicide and mental health-related issues. However, responders are slowly opening up about t...

Norm Wielsch was a police officer for 26 years, during which time he saw a lot, made some bad decisions, suffered and overcame opioid addiction and spent time in prison. In this episode Norm talks about how he emerged stronger from his suffering and became a positive force to help in the lives of others.  For a law enforcement officer, traumatic emotional wounds and scars are not always visible to...

In this episode, we discuss police wellness, resilience, and the soon-to-be-released book Living Blue by Barbara Rubel and Jason M. Palamara. Law enforcement officers face high rates of burnout, secondary trauma, and compassion fatigue, which can significantly impact their well-being. Living Blue provides practical tools for officers, their families, and communities to combat occupational stress a...

 On February 27, 1975, a five-alarm fire erupted in the basement of the New York Telephone Company building in lower Manhattan. The toxic blaze exposed 699 FDNY firefighters to hazardous chemicals, leading to long-term health issues, including cancer. Retired firefighter Dan Noonan, first due on 3 Truck, has spent decades advocating for awareness of occupational cancer and toxic exposure in the fi...

What is Reiki and Shamanic Healing, and how can it benefit first responders? This episode features an interview with energy practitioners Akilah Barr and Deana Pacqua speaking about Reiki, Shamanic Healing and other Alternative Healing Modalities for First Responders. We discuss how energy work is becoming a more common practice for first responders and how their work can be enhanced by energy hea...

This episode features an interview with first responder Dr Ken Hoffman, a functional medicine doctor in practice for 20 years. He is Medical Director of SOPHIA Natural Health Center in Brookfield CT which delivers the most comprehensive scientific, holistic evaluation and treatment that is designed to find, and treat, the root cause of health problems. Ken is a US Army veteran, an active EMT in hi...

On this episode, Stacy, Bonnie and David speak with Deputy Chief Bernie Meehan, a veteran of over 400 first responder critical incident debriefings. Our topic: Critical Incident Stress Management and Debriefings, and how a CISD/CISM debrief can kick start the healing process. The Critical incident stress debriefing (CISD) process is a tool to help people who are involved in an incident that could...

We speak with Dan Willis, a retired police Captain who is an expert on the proven benefits of serving with your heart and acting with compassion in the face of job-related trauma and stress. Dan is a highly regarded expert on the subject of emotional survival and improving spiritual wellness for law enforcement and first responders. HIs award-winning book "Bulletproof Spirit: The First Respon...

In this episode, we speak with yoga instructors Wendy Boscia and Steve Zagami. Wendy comes from a family of responders, including her dad and brothers, and Steve is a retired U.S.M.C. Sgt., and FDNY Firefighter. Wendy and Steve will explain the benefits of Yoga for First Responders, who are exposed to emotional and physical stressors and injuries. Yoga, meditation and breath work offer benefits th...

On this episode, Bonnie and David speak with Michele Giorgianni, First Responder Liaison at Aware Recovery Care @awarerecoverycare, and  Jason Palamara, Director of Veteran & First Responder Engagement at Forge VFR @forgehealth Our topic:  Substance Abuse Disorder treatments for First Responders. AWARE offers home-based recovery care including in-home withdrawal management, and Forge offers ev...

In this mini-documentary episode hosted by Dr. Stacy Raymond, we will take a closer look at spirituality. Everyone has their own concept of what it means and that's what makes this topic so interesting. Spirituality is a foundation which allows us to continue living through tough times, it is a source that guides our decisions and helps us get through the day. For many First Responders and me...

On this episode, we’ll be speaking with Nick Nunnally, USCG (ret), City of Danbury Firefighter and Plank Owner of 2NDGO.org Nick will be talking about transitioning from one purpose to another and creating a community that lasts after your career is over. 2NDGO, a veteran owned and operated company, is teaching military veterans and first responders how to be more resilient in their everyday lives...

On this episode, we’ll be speaking with John Lynch, Town of Wilton, CT Chief of Police & Emergency Management Director, and Nick Paproski, Director Of ALS Operations at Vintech Management Services, about what you can do to become an engaged, proactive leader. Chief Lynch and Nick explain the importance of being a leader who maintains an awareness of their member’s physical and mental well-bein...

On this episode, we’ll be speaking about resilience for first responder relationships. Caryn Czarnecki has been married to a career firefighter for twenty years, and will share the many unique challenges that come with being a spouse of a first responder. We’ll review some of the real life issues faced by first responder spouses, along with some solutions. Linda Rost, LCSW also speaks about the ch...

Cops understand Cops. COPLine is a confidential, 24 hour, toll free helpline for law enforcement professionals and their families that is answered by retired police officers. For the past 20 years COPLine has served as a resource to help law enforcement cope with the stresses of the job. The organization's goal is to answer calls from law enforcement officers and their families who are facing...

K9 First Responders: Connecting in Crisis In this episode, we speak with Bradford Cole, Executive Director of K9 First Responders about Connecting in Crisis: Lessons from the halls of Sandy Hook to the halls of Congress. This video aims to raise awareness of the incredible work performed by K9 First Responders. K9 First Responders provides K9 teams trained to assist victims of disaster, catastroph...

On this episode of Responder Resilience we hear from the rank and file, firefighters, paramedics, police officers and dispatch who have used EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) to overcome traumatic stress. They received therapy and the support of a responder-savvy, compassionate counselor who provided them a safe space to process their emotions. This is an up close and  personal...