James Boomhower joined via zoom from Rhode Island to share his experiences in the EMS profession for over 20 years and the mission behind Stay Fit 4 Duty, an LLC which he founded to help healthcare providers treat their mental health with the same passion and tenacity as the patients and populations they treat every day.

James is a Lead Peer Support Director w/ Boston Medflight of Bedford, in Massachusetts, start a peer support group at his department, which lead to starting Stay Fit 4 Duty. Also, James is working towards becoming a licensed counselor with some great knowledge in regards to mental health.

We discussed the difference between culturally competent/informed therapists. Also, the stages of how to learn, identity, act, and acknowledge ones mental health. In addition, we discussed some of the challenges and important things to consider while starting a peer support team.

Check out Stay Fit 4 Duty on Instagram and the Internet!

Instagram: @Stay_fit4duty
Website: https://www.stayfit4duty.org/

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Welcome back Rebecca as she was on SZN 3 EP 4 where we discussed the high amount of stress and burden that our community faces in regards to finances. 

Rebecca recently became a certified financial coach and runs Blue Line Money Coach, who's mission is to help our first responder community break the cycle of working a great amount of overtime in order to pay off debt and/or rely on overtime availability and spend money outside of one's financial means. 

Rebecca breaks down what working with her looks like and what she charges per session. After working with Rebecca, everyone understood their finances, income, and had a "weight" lifted off of their shoulders due to lowering their stress level. 

Also, we talked about the pros/cons of going "tax exempt" for a pay period that has a lot of overtime on it and taking overtime in pay only or comp time. 

Enjoy learning about how we can all improve our lives and get our spending and income in order!

If you want to reach out to Rebecca, below is her contact information:

Website: https://www.priorityonefc.com
Instagram: @bluelinemoneycoach

Enjoy a free consultation here:
https://priorityonefinancialcoaching.hbportal.co/schedule/62d06685248eda0150092882

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Joining us from Illinois is Ariana, who founded Limitless Momentum, a clothing brand, with the intent to normalize mental health for not only first responders, but for all. 

Having been a police officer for 7 years and a field training officer for 2 1/2 years, Ariana had been exposed to critical incidents, stress/burnout, depression, and anxiety which was her biggest hurdle. 

We discussed how the stigma of mental health can be reduced and how resources can be provided to our community in the early months of our careers. Primarily, we had a great conversation in regards to the importance of discussing these important matters with newer officers, dispatchers, EMT’s, etc., while in the field training process. 

“Show The Fuck Up” and “Check On Your People” are just two examples of impactful quotes that are printed on Limitless Momentum merchandise. 

Also, a huge thank you to Ariana for being open and her willingness to share that she has been attending therapy for several years now and breaking down the process of finding said therapist, what therapy looks like, and what the therapists office even looks like. She also discussed the challenges and some tools that she and her girlfriend, Terra, use to community while she’s on patrol. A simple emoji sent via text may be a great tool for you and your significant other to communicate even while standing on a perimeter post. 

Check out Limitless Momentum at www.limitlessmomentum.co and her Instagram @ 

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Chuck is a retired Police Sergeant after 28 years followed by 6 years at his local Southern California Sheriff's Department. Chuck discusses the stigma behind mental health when he first started and how it has changed for the better recently. In addition, Chuck explains the the affects that our professions have on our families. Chuck shared a story of an Ex Marine that was at his department for three years, who died by suicide via self inflicted gunshot wound. 

While employed as a Deputy Sheriff, Chuck was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, ultimately forcing him to give up the identity of being a Police Officer/Deputy Sheriff. Chuck explains the shock and mental state he was in after learning about the diagnosis. 

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Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a terminal diagnosis that is affecting several first responders and service members on a daily basis that does not get discussed enough. In this episode, we are changing that, as we bring awareness that first responders and veterans are 2X as likely to be diagnosed with ALS. When a veteran is diagnosed, the veteran is 3X as likely to die by suicide.

Mandi, Tim, Katrina, and Lynn, are volunteers with I AM ALS and discussed caregiver burden, prevalence amongst our community, survivors guilt, grief, signs/symptoms, etc. In addition, all have been directly impacted by ALS, which resulted in the loss of a family member/spouse to ALS. 

Also in attendance was Juliet from Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), which is a non profit assisting our paralyzed veterans. PVA has been assisting I AM ALS with ensuring the veteran community receives the upmost medical care. 

More information can be found at the following:

www.IAMALS.org
www.PVA.org
Instagram: iamalsorg

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*TRIGGER WARNING-DARK HUMOR*
 
The Overwatch Collective 🎙

Had the pleasure of talking with Joe about his officer involved shooting and how he was able to mentally push through the hardship that followed along with discussions on therapy. Joe talked about his family dynamics with his wife and kids while being a first responder. Joe also talks about his response to a suicide call. After retiring Joe came up with a product called STAC Stick which is a compact portable multi-tool that can be used in a variety of environments to help control traffic and save lives.

If you use everyday cones or other reflective device, check them out at www.stacsticks.com or send us a DM and we will get you in touch with him! Enjoy!
https://stacsticks.com

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In this episode, Mike shares how three of his family members passed away in one year and how he was able to push through and be strong for his wife and four kids. Mike explains how he was married at a young age and had young children while starting out his career in the United States Marine Corps (USMC). Mike has been in the for 12 years and his MOS is Motor Transport (Motor T).  

Knowing the impact that Mike's story has on our community, he openly discussed losing his brother to suicide and the affects the tragedy had on his family and friends. Mike has been invited to be a guest speaker at various Crisis Intervention Trainings (CIT) throughout the East Coast such as Jacksonville Police Department. During the CIT trainings, Mike has used his brother's story to raise awareness to the potential suicide awareness signs that people in our community may display. 

Thank you to Mike for flying out to Florida to record a very important episode and hope y'all enjoy! If you have any questions or want to reach out to Mike, please email us at [email protected] and we will get you in touch with him. 

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Welcome back to T.O.C. Podcast Mark as we were joined by his better half, Christina! Mark was our guest on SZN 1 EP 19 in November of 2021 and discussed the First Responder Support Network West Coast Post Trauma Retreat and shared traumatic stories that led to his complex PTSD diagnosis. 

On this episode, Mark and Christina openly discuss how Mark's lowest point in his life affected her and their 4 children. Christina shared how she did whatever she could to help Mark stay busy and not isolate himself. Thank you to them for being open during this podcast and sharing the most challenging time of their lives. 

Mark was a San Francisco Fire Dept. Paramedic and ultimately medically retired. Mark discussed how he needed to provide for the family while on leave, but lied and said he was "fine" in order to make money. During this time, Mark knew he would experience more traumatic incidents, but made the decision to go back, which wasn't the right choice. Following retirement, Mark struggled with his identity like most first responders and service members newly retired. 

Furthermore, Mark talked about The Poyer Team, Mark's real-estate company who is dedicated to making it a smooth and easy process for our first responder and veteran community to purchase or sell a home. The Poyer Team will be donating 20% of their commission towards T.O.C. in order to fund more therapy for our community. Check them out!

There is an entire medical and physical process to become a first responder or service member, but nothing as our community prepares for retirement. A lot of people who retire replay calls for service in their head, feel like they lost their identity, and miss the community. 

Enjoy this informational episode and if you want to reach out to Mark or Christina, we'll get ya connected!

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This podcast with Bri, V.E.T.S. Vice President, breaks down the struggles that our service members face transitioning from active duty to being a student on a college campus. Their mission is to serve veterans, dependents, and active duty members at San Francisco State University in order to create a smooth process to obtain a degree. 

In addition, we discussed the challenges that Bri faced as her father was in the United States Marine Corps and deployed multiple times. Bri shared the challenges of her father being away and how his personality changed upon his return from said deployments. Moreover, her father sustained a heart attack due to increased stress after being promoted to a higher enlisted position. Bri shared the darkest time of her life and discussed her suicide attempt via pills. 

Enjoy this podcast and thank you Bri for being comfortable for sharing her suicide attempt and all pertinent information regarding V.E.T.S. at SFSU. 

For further information and how to reach out to V.E.T.S., see below:

V.E.T.S. Corner Phone Number (415) 338 - 7702 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/VeteransSFSU/
Instagram: VETS_SFSU
Twitter: V.E.T.S.@SFSU

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This episode is full of great content and important information for our community. Matt, a retired LEO after 15 years, is now an associate marriage and family therapist and is almost at the 3,000 hour mark in order to test to be a licensed therapist in California. 

We started off by discussing the stress while in the field training program as an LEO and how there is little to no training on how to manage said stress. After successfully passing FTO, Matt experienced two tragic calls for service which he shares and believes led him to his PTSD. Matt experienced some challenges of finding a culturally competent therapist, but was finally able to be matched and ultimately attended the West Coast Post-Trauma Retreat (WCPR) put on by the First Responder Support Network. Matt breaks down the WCPR in detail for the listeners to get a better idea of what it entails, how to apply, and the financial side of things. 

Matt discussed EMDR and Brain Spotting and the difference and benefits of both. In addition, we discussed the challenges of finding the right therapist, financial burden, and common themes that come with attending therapy. 

The more people we can get to attend therapy and the more positive discussion behind it equals more people in our community taking advantage of the resources. 

Thank you to Matt for sharing his stories and explaining important resources for the community. You can contact Matt at [email protected] if you have any questions or want to work with Matt. 

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