When there is an emergency, we all count on someone being there to respond to the call for help. These events not only impact the community but also profoundly impact the officers who respond to the calls for help. First responders focus on caring for others, often at the expense of their self-care. As a result, police officers face an increased risk of experiencing behavioral health issues, including mental illness and substance abuse disorder.

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• No one is confronted with more situations that demoralize and create emotional, mental, and spiritual burdens than today’s law enforcement officer. ​

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• They are constantly exposed to the worst of society in their daily interaction with a broken world. Death. Pain. Depravity. Hopelessness.​

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• These burdens also affect the officer’s family and other members of his or her department.

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• Challenges impacting an officer’s wellbeing include critical incidents, processing death and depravity, cynicism, hypervigilance, leadership, unhealthy coping mechanisms, social media, news, and political climate

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• They often neglect their own self-care.​