KNOW WHERE YOUR AUTHORITY COMES FROM
When our culture loudly shouts that you and your profession are not needed — “defund the police!” — it’s easy to feel defeated, even depressed. Sometimes it’s hard to find hope. Yet you know the vast majority of our LEO brothers and sisters serve because they’re called to help others. They do their duty out […]
BRAIN TRAINING TO ENHANCE RESILIENCE
The past year has posed many challenges to our typical notions of safety, predictability and control. The persistent nature of the nationwide and local civil unrest and COVID-19 public health restrictions have tested our resilience (and sanity) more than ever. Although it is entirely normal to experience a range of emotions and thoughts about these […]
A TIME OF STRENGTH
For several in our Department, the year 2020 has been filled with both personal and professional challenges. We have mourned the loss of several of those closest to us. We have worked to find common ground with the populations of individuals we serve. We have grappled with the stress of the pandemic while attempting to […]
ALCOHOL AND STRESS
An occasional drink of alcohol is no reason for concern. However, like electricity and water, certain things do not mix well. Alcohol and stress are two such things, as they can be a toxic combination. While alcoholic beverages may help us relax, assuming they will make our stress go away is faulty thinking. Alcohol is […]
BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO
The title of Neil Sedaka’s 1960 hit song perfectly captures how difficult and challenging it can be to end a relationship, as well as to adaptively grieve/mourn its end. Painful emotions are likely to develop when relationships end, even if you are the one deciding to break it off. These emotions often develop as a […]
YOU HAVE THE RIGHT PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT?
At the end of April, we started a Zoom support group for health-care workers in our church. I had heard about the stresses they were going through with the spread of COVID-19, the very real pressures of being in the hospital environment while trying to be safe and careful, personally and for their families’ sake. […]