Help Wanted: Barriers to officers getting mental health treatment.
When I say officers, this time I’m not just referring to corrections officers but also law enforcement officers as well since they both experience poor mental health statistics and similar issues accessing the help they need.
Officers work in an environment that forces them to deny their emotions in order to do their job safely. They can’t acknowledge their fear, anger, disgust or even sadness. They have to remain neutral and simply do the job. Trained to be hypervigilant to look for potential threats, their high levels of adrenaline keep them in fight or flight mode even outside of work. Yet, they’re expected to express positive emotions with family and loved ones. It’s not as easy as flipping a switch and it takes its toll.
Disturbing Statistics
Officers experience the potential for life-or-death situations every day on the job and not just regarding other people but their own safety is often at risk too.
For corrections officers specifically, studies show that in just six months they are exposed to various traumatic incidents including:
93% have witnessed violence between inmates
85% have seen someone seriously injured or killed
76% have seen or handled a dead body
60% feared being injured or killed while on the job
45% experienced a coworker suicide
29% have been seriously injured themselves
Officers across the board are all faced with a much lower life expectancy, at about 59 years old and they’re more likely to die within 18 months of retirement. They’re four times more likely to die by suicide than the general population and are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty. Officers experience higher rates of mental health diagnoses than the general population in the areas of PTSD, anxiety, depression, and alcohol abuse. And they have higher rates of divorce than the public.
These are very concerning statistics, especially considering most of these studies were done prior to 2020. We know conditions for all officers have become more stressful and dangerous since Covid and the civil unrest we continue to experience.
Roadblocks and Barriers
If things are that bad, why don’t they just get help?
If only it were that easy. Unfortunately, there are several barriers’ officers face when seeking mental health treatment, most of which are engrained in the culture of the job and the policies of the departments.
These work environments often don’t support officers admitting to emotional difficulties that need treatment. To face death and remain calm in a crisis requires a level of emotional strength and detachment. To admit they can handle violent criminals, but they can’t handle their own emotions is seen as weak or at the very least, misunderstood. They are expected to be the rock and stable during tough situations, not all up in their feelings.
Older generation officers were taught to suck it up or drown those feelings in beer and they pass these expectations on to younger generations simply from lack of knowing another way. It’s up to each individual to value their own needs and their own life, to break this cycle and learn that allowing themselves to express their emotions at appropriate times in healthy ways makes them a stronger officer, not weaker.
Another aspect of the job culture is policies that don’t support mental health care. In many states, if an officer is injured on the job they receive workers’ compensation to cover their physical needs without using their own insurance and they continue to receive a paycheck. However, in many of these same states, worker’s compensation doesn’t cover mental health treatment. Officers must find their own therapist and use their own insurance benefits.
If the employer offers EAP, an employee assistance program, which provides therapy at no costs to the staff, these services are limited to 3-5 sessions, hardly enough time to make lasting progress and heal trauma. These therapists have a contract with the department to provide services. There is no guarantee they actually specialize in working with this population or with trauma.
And if you ask most officers if it’s something supported by the department then it’s often not something to be trusted. Unfortunately, there’s a high level of mistrust between staff and state departments due to personal experiences, ever changing policies with power changes, the political environment, and funding cuts that appear like the departments don’t care about officer safety.
Which brings me to the peer support partners and wellness units some departments provide. I’ve heard experiences of officers assuming what they shared with peer support partners was confidential only to find out their personal struggles were fuel for the gossip train at work. Officers worry that if a department run wellness unit has access to their mental health concerns, they could be seen as unfit for duty, removed from the job and have no income to support their family. Better to stay quiet than risk losing their job.
As one officer said, “I don’t need no wellness team therapy dog visiting my unit. Just let me go home so I can pet my own freaking dog.” Having a wellness team visit officers while they are on shift to ask about their mental health, especially after a critical incident, is not the time these officers can express emotions. They have a job to do and can’t appear vulnerable or compromised around inmates or coworkers.
Even if an officer decides they want to schedule an appointment with a mental health professional, the national staffing crisis for all officers makes taking time off difficult. Say you’re lucky enough to have the weekends off because you’ve put in 10 years and have a shit ton of trauma to discuss, but mandates are making you work 12-16 hour shifts, when do you have time for a weekday appointment? And newer staff who are more likely to be working those 16-hour days don’t accrue sick time fast enough to take off for weekly therapy appointments.
I’ve had officers with over 800 sick hours call in three separate times in a two-month period for mental health reasons and were harassed and written up for “time and attendance.” These practices don’t encourage officers to take the time they need to be mentally fit for the high-risk job they perform.
All Hope is Not Lost
I’m well aware of these barriers and that’s why I want to make getting help easier for officers.
I’ve created my website that includes:
Free resources and downloadable guides for stress management, emotional processing and coping skills.
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A national providers list of therapists who specialize in working with officers and first responders.
If you’re a therapist working with this population and want to be included on this list, please reach out to Vanessa@findingyourwaytherapy.com
Blog posts with information and skills to manage the high stress job.
Information on the TeraP90 PEMF Terahertz device to activate the calming nervous system.
A monthly newsletter that answers questions people send in looking for advice.
I also created a private Facebook group called Corrections: Life Outside the Uniform. This community is for corrections professionals, their loved ones, and therapists working with this population to share resources, support, and advice. Bringing together these people to engage in helpful, meaningful discussions to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
To give skills and tools to even more people nationwide, I’ve just completed my first book, Stop Letting the Job Become Your Life: How to survive working in a high trauma environment without losing yourself. The release date is scheduled for early 2025. If you want to be the first to hear when it’s available, sign up for my newsletter on my website.
Resources are available and if you continue to ask for them, more therapists and agencies will step up to meet the demand. Don’t let these current barriers stop you from getting the support you deserve.
Until next time, stay safe, stay strong, stay sane.
References:
https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/research-mounting-problem-correctional-officer-stress
https://www.benchmarkanalytics.com/blog/category/officer-wellness/