Anger Like happiness, sadness, anxiety, and disgust, anger is one of humanity’s primary emotions. It is a normal, even healthy emotion, but, left unchecked, it can be very destructive. According to Charles Spielberger, Ph.D., anger is “an emotional state that varies in intensity from mild irritation to intense fury and rage.” Like the other “basic” emotions,…
Burnout, Exhaustion, & Fatigue Risking their lives daily, first responders must respond to traumatic incidents with care, good judgment, and professionalism. Being unpredictable and loaded with stress, first responders must have the emotional stability to multi-task while maintaining control in the face of physical threats. The difficulty of their job requires them to “exercise considerable…
Embitterment Due to the nature of the job, embitterment is prevalent among first responders. You get passed over for a promotion, a close friend turns against you, or you just get burned out from the cumulative exposure to the high stress calls for service; you may become a victim of the most toxic and destructive…