Emergency medical services (EMS) workers deal with unique work-related stresses that can affect overall mental health and well-being. EMS's daily work life holds significant occupational hazards that can negatively impact an individual’s quality of life and heighten risks for post-traumatic mental health conditions. The effects of frequent and intense exposure to traumatic critical incidents, workplace bullying, conflicts within organizational structures, high call volumes, and disrupted sleep schedules due to shift work can accumulate until the emotional weight impacts one’s sense of self, physical health, and mental health safety. Is not uncommon for workplace stress to spill over into close relationships, such as family, friends, life partners and children. In this blog post, Canadian Certified Counsellor, Juanita Marshall, explores “EMS Burnout” and offers suggestions on how you can cope with your risks for mental health injury. Juanita has a special interest in counselling EMS personnel. If you or someone you know is struggling with EMS Burnout and would like to work with Juanita, you can book an appointment with them here.
Here is a list of signs and symptoms that you might be suffering from or heading towards burnout:
If the list above includes signs or symptoms you have been experiencing, here are four coping strategies you can try to combat burnout.
Find a counsellor you don’t have to educate to gain their help
EMS and First Responders require counselling that recognizes their inherent risks. There are trauma-informed therapeutic tools such as EMDR, sensorimotor somatic therapy, and clinical hypnosis (to name a few of many!). However, the most important ingredient for people to succeed in therapy is working with someone knowledgeable and empathetic who makes them feel safe and understood. Finding a therapist who is comfortable diving into the difficult topics that come with working within the EMS profession is vital. It is important for self-care and mental health safety to find a counsellor or psychologist you can trust who has some insider understanding of the world you work in.
Juanita Marshall has personal experience supporting EMS family and friends. This coupled with Juanita’s professional counselling credentials has made Juanita a fierce advocate for EMS mental Health. Learn more about Juanita's experience with EMS mental health services below.
“I have been a support for EMS family and friends throughout their first class in EMR to eventually working as Advanced EMT paramedics. I’ve listened to their work stories and helped them work through the variety of thoughts and emotions that can come from difficult, complicated, and traumatic calls in rural, rural northern, and urban settings. I have been in the lives of people who work in 911 dispatch or rural volunteer fire departments and gained their perspectives on emergency medicine in the field. Prior to that, I was peer support for military members and their families for over 16 years. I grew up in a community of medics who had served in war zones and watched them wrestle with long-term mental health costs to their unresolved trauma. I am dedicated to develop my professional trauma-informed education to better support clients impacted by chronic and significant traumatic stress. I work within a trauma-informed person-centred approach that relies upon building relationships of trust as a core professional value.”
If you would like more information on burnout and EMS mental health, you can take a look at the resources below.
Meet our certified therapists, Adam, Selena, Danielle, and Shaheen. No matter what you want to work on, we have a therapist to help. Our Counsellors focus on helping you feel at ease by allowing you to feel heard and understood. By using a holistic, or whole picture approach, our trained Counsellors can help their patients live a happier, more authentic life. Our therapists offer adult counselling, couples counselling, and adolescent/teen counselling. Interested in learning more? Need to book a session? Contact Us here.
Counselling doesn’t just have to be for those who have reached a crisis situation. If you want to live a happier life by discussing the issues that are causing you stress, anxiety, or fear, contact Holistic Healing today to book your free initial consultation.