Welcome to I Will Hold Space For Your Darkness; a First Responder Mental Health Podcast hosted by Erin Jane.
A former Australian Police Officer and Detective, wife of an American Firefighter, previous crisis counsellor for a suicide prevention organization and current CISM trained, Certified Life Coach for First Responders, Emergency Services Members, Spouses and Loved Ones.
In this episode, Part 2 of 2, Erin speaks with Travis Gribble, a former police officer with 24 years experience across both Michigan and Arizona. He held various positions throughout his law enforcement career, including SWAT member, SWAT Team Leader, Patrol Sergeant and Deputy.
Travis is now retired and founded My Arena; a First Responder Mental Health Education and Advocacy organisation. Whose mission is to help "first responders find peace, healing, and strength as they navigate the mental health challenges during their careers" and "educate agencies on how to appropriately handle critical incidents for the employees involved and provide critical response care when needed."
Travis and Erin discuss his multiple attempts to find mental health assistance, the call that ended up being his "breaking point" and what help for someone like Travis, diagnosed with PTSD, truly looks like. He talks about his experience with EMDR, Post Traumatic Growth the the origin of his First Responder Mental Health Advocacy Foundation, My Arena.
They also both discuss their affiliation and support for The Overwatch Collective.
Erin and Travis' entire conversation went for 2.5 hours, so it's broken up into two separate parts, as some heavy content is discussed in detail and at length. If you haven't already listened to Part 1, I implore you to go back and listen to that episode first, as Travis' story and experience is compelling, raw and important to understand in its entirety. This episode picks up where Part 1 left off.
**Please be mindful that details of extreme child abuse and a critical incident involving murder/suicide are mentioned during this episode**
Similarly, as when he gives a presentation to a First Responder community, Travis is humble in his approach to sharing his experiences and courageously raw in his description of how he has been affected. He rips open the wounds of his own traumatic experiences in an effort to help others not go through what he went through.
It was an absolute honour to have Mr Gribble on as a guest and we hope you find some value in listening to Part 2 of our conversation in this episode.
Learn more about Travis' work here: https://myarenallc.com/
Or find his on Instagram: @my_.arena
Please feel free to reach out if you'd like a topic discussed, would like to be a guest or are interested in receiving coaching services from Erin Jane.
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://www.erinjanecoaching.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/erinjanecoaching
Call or Text: +1 617 396 4695
You can watch the episodes as video on YouTube here: https://youtube.com/@Erin-Jane-Coaching?si=XI8q0z3mhmzO_a7_
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