Welcome to episode 12 of the In the Name of Service Podcast. I’m your host, Dr. Barb Thompson. Here we broadcast stories of everyday men and women who’ve answered a call to serve in hopes of inspiring and catalyzing the rest of us to follow suit in our own way. Today’s interview is with Michael Sugrue. Michael is an Air Force Veteran, Retired Law Enforcement Officer, author, and father.In today’s conversation, Michael tells us his story, taking us back to a traumatic critical incident one Friday morning that completely changed his life and how the hundreds of accounts of trauma in his law enforcement career eventually led to his book Relentless Courage: Winning the Battle Against Frontline Trauma. Listen in to hear how Michael turned a life full of trauma into one filled with hope and a purpose to save countless other first responders by demolishing the stigma of asking for help.Michael is courageous and full of humility. His desire to rescue may have begun when he was just 8 years old looking up to his stepfather during his career in law enforcement, but it is now fully coming to fruition. Michael suffered from post-traumatic stress for several years before finding a trusted and competent therapist. The negative stigma of asking for help at the time kept him believing that his symptoms made him weak, that he couldn’t feel the way he did and still be a warrior. He was ashamed to speak about it and suffered in silence for years. However, he is living proof, as he says, that real strength and courage are demonstrated in one’s act of asking for help when it’s needed. He believes that the strength and power of sharing his story…or your story…is where true healing begins.If you have ever dealt with trauma or are dealing with it now, please listen. And if you know any first responders, please share this with them or go ahead and buy Relentless Courage on their behalf and send it to them. This book is saving lives and helping those of us close to first responders better understand them and their experiences. Michael had the opportunity to co-author this book with psychologist Dr. Shauna Springer, who also wrote the book WARRIOR: How to Support Those who Protect Us. If you’re in the military or law enforcement, you are probably well versed on Lt Col Dave Grossman’s books, On Combat and On Killing, which I know from personal experience have been excellent resources for the people I’ve worked with in the Special Operations community. Speaking of Michael’s book Relentless Courage, Grossman says, “it is truly the natural and essential successor to my book On Combat”. For a direct link to Relentless Courage: Winning the Battle Against Frontline Trauma, please see the show notes. Michael enjoys connecting with first responders and those that support them from all over the world; consider connecting with him on social media. Thank you for listening! To Purchase Relentless Courage: Winning the Battle Against Frontline Trauma, click the link below:https://www.amazon.com/RELENTLESS-COURAGE-Winning-Against-Frontline/dp/1736824414