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First Responder Therapy in California.

Release cumulative stress & find a more sustainable way to show up in your life and at work.

IF YOU FEEL LIKE...
 
You're having a harder time managing your stress or not quite feeling like yourself, it may be time to offload some of those cumulative stressors. â€‹
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First responder therapy is individual therapy for first/emergency responders and veterans. This therapy is geared towards the critical stressors that come with service, helping you learn some tangible skills to improve your physical and mental health, and addressing the blocks that can get in the way.

The very nature of being a first responder entails exposure to potentially dangerous or traumatic situations. Typically, some form of your training was geared at drilling in ways to respond in these situations so that you can respond appropriately and immediately. Unfortunately, a byproduct of this can be that you overlook your own bodies cues and there's often a lack of training on what to do for yourself as a result of these exposures.

There is only so much stress and mental/physical trauma that we can take before you start to get stuck in a state of hyper or hypo-arousal (or begin to experience signs of a post traumatic injury). Considering stressors can occur in our personal lives and in our prior histories as well, support with this stress is crucial.

In that way, you can think of therapy as training on brain health.

Let yourself  to actually unpack stressors so that you can get back to being present.

Maybe you're...

  • Struggling to enjoy your down time or finding that you're feeling tense and on edge

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  • ​Finding that things from the past keep popping up in the present (thoughts, memories, dreams)

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  • Noticing your relationships suffering from difficulties communicating or from reactivity

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  • Having a difficult time accessing your emotions or feeling like yourself

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  • Picking up on a negative perspective (of other people, the world, or even yourself)

WHAT CAN IT HELP WITH?

The signs of Post Traumatic Injury:

The buildup of stress is part of the job, the way that it impacts you doesn't have to be. 

 

Some ways you may notice the stress spilling over:
 

  • Intrusive memories or thoughts

  • Flashbacks or nightmares

  • Physical tension or irritability

  • Emotional numbness or feeling disconnected

  • Avoiding reminders of incidents or talking about them

 

The symptoms of Emergency Responder Exhaustion Syndrome:
 

  • Low mood, feeling isolated, depressed, a lack of interest in things you normally enjoy

  • Feeling physically and emotionally exhausted

  • Difficulty sleeping or insomnia

  • Thoughts of harming yourself or ending your life

  • Feelings of fear, worry, or sadness

  • Using mood altering substances to change the way you feel

  • Feeling like you cant relax or that you get stuck in a 'state of readiness'

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Therapy for first responders can help you...   
 

Process difficulties

Process repeated exposures, content from calls, and stressors in a way that will actually help you decrease the intensity

Build tolerance

Pushing things aside only makes it louder - learn how to address discomfort head on 

Reduce negativity

Decrease anger, anxiety, and agitation so that you can be more present and actually enjoy downtime

Learn coping skills

Learn ways to combat the physical and emotional exhaustion that comes with cumulative stress

Regulate your nervous system

Learn about the role that your nervous system plays and how to support yours to more effectively shift in and out of that state of readiness

Improve your relationships

Learn how to overcome patterns in relationships with others and with yourself, identify your emotional and physical cues, and prioritize your health

It's time to allow yourself to have a different experience. 
 
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