I'm a highly driven former Navy SEAL pursuing a career in mental health counseling while working solely with first responders and their spouses. Special operations veterans have a significant amount of resources available at their disposal, ranging from education and job placement to financial assistance. First responders do not. Our battlefield was 10,000 miles away, whereas the battlefield for first responders is the same intersection they drive by daily, that house on the corner they can't avoid on the way to work, or the neighborhoods they patrol every...single...day.
My mission is to show that seeking services for mental health--a term I dislike, for the record--isn't a show of weakness, but of strength. Of courage. Because a stronger, more capable and resilient operator/responder is a force multiplier to not only oneself but the team, and the mission, rather than a liability. Those who avoid seeking mental health services for fear of what others may think, for example, are actually personifying the very thing they're hoping to avoid: fear.
To change the stigma around mental health held by special operators, law enforcement, and first responders, I believe one needs to lead by example. That’s why my mission is to simply be the change I want to see by becoming a therapist myself. I share the lessons and insights gleaned from my experiences here.
Paid vs. Free Versions
There are two ways to consume the information I share here: paid and free. I offer both but you will get more with a $5 monthly (or $49/yr) subscription (obviously). Here’s a rundown of each:
Paid Version
Full access to every article (3-4 per month)
Journal Prompts
Archived Podcast Access (listen to the article on-the-go)
Support for my work and my mission
Free Version
Limited article access
More
Jeff is the author of the Amazon #1 new release Navigating Chaos: How to Find Certainty in Uncertain Situations. Follow him on instagram or facebook. Read his full bio here.
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