Blue Wives Tribe

Today, I talked with JJ, author of a new bible study book specifically for police wives and girlfriends called Armor of God for Police Wives. Link to her book here - Amazon link to the book: https://www.amazon.com/Armor-God-Police-Wives-Gutierrez/dp/B09FS5BF51/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=armor+of+god+for+police+wives&qid=1631773254&sr=8-1

Today, our special guest talked to us about changing thinking patterns related to overeating and over drinking. We discussed how to change your relationship with food and alcohol!

I know I may say this a lot, but this was one of my fav guest interviews.I chat with Lauren, founder of The Strong Police Wife Society about her struggles as a LEOW and balancing marriage + kids. And how she came to form Strong Police Wife Society and details on how to join (hint- doors just opened yesterday!). This was such a real, honest, and open discussion LE marriages.

A little about Lauren: She is a mom of four. She has been with her LEO for 10 years, married for 6. He is an officer in a major city in MN. Lauren is a certified health and life coach who specifically works with LEOW. She empower LEOW to ditch stress and survival mode to be stronger in their relationships with themselves, their officers, and God.

This is an interview with Kristen from Heels and Holsters. Find her on IG @heelsandholsters

Some cool things we talked about:

* Her no-excuses, practical guide that you can read in five minutes a day for 10 days

* Topics in her guide:

1. Acceptance (A)

2. Self-Care Physical Activity (S)

3. Self-Care Sleep or Lack or It

4. Self-Care The Way You Look

5. Self-Care Nutrition

6. Self-Care Spiritual/Emotional

7. Self-Care Social

8. Independence- Solitude (I)

9. Independence- Motherhood Help

10. Planning for You (P)

In this episode, I sat down and talked with Eric and Elizabeth Rivas from First Responders First Treatment Program. They are a husband-wife LE Family Duo! Eric is recently retired LEO and Elizabeth is longtime LEOW, licensed marriage and family therapist, and former correctional officer. They talk to us about the treatment program offerings, common struggles of first responders, and the steps they can take to get help.

Being a police wife or police girlfriend has its challenges. How you respond to those challenges is what colors your experience. Do you want to just get by, or do you want to thrive through this journey? You hold all the power. In this episode I cover 4 ways to maintain your mental wellness as a LEOW or LEO GF.

1.Reframe Negative Thoughts

2. Have a Favorite Hobby

3. Practice Gratitude

4. Radical Acceptance

In this episode, I overview a research article about how police work creates unique stressors in marital relationships.

Karaffa et al. 2015 conducted a research study wherein they administered a needs assessment (a questionnaire asking LEOs and their spouses about the kinds of difficulties they faced in their marriage) to 82 officers and 89 officer spouses. The average age of the officer completing the survey was 39. The average number of years the LEOs and their spouses were married was 1-5 years when they took the survey. The results showed LEOs and their spouses agreed upon the kind of stressors they faced and the kind of support they sought out. The researchers found that while spouses were proud to be married to their LEOs, concerns still existed about finances, work-family conflict, and law enforcement-specific stressors, such as negative attitudes toward police. Both officers and their spouses relied heavily on support from their family and friends (including other police families) than professional support.

I also give my fav tips on increasing communication in your relationship with your LEO.

In this episode, Nicole reviews some quick tips on moving forward from the Floyd issue. She goes over some personal steps her and her husband have taken to maintain balance and wellness.

Today starts our series on LEOW journeys! We open with an interview from our very own social media admin, Emma! Emma shares her story about coping with her LEO being in a critical incident shortly after they were married and very early on in his career. Her husband has almost died twice this year already (barely a week after they got home from our honeymoon!). He was severely injured on duty in January, and will have symptoms for the rest of his life due to it. In some ways it changed the man she married weeks after they said I do, but through it all they’ve both learned a lot about commitment, patience, and love.