General Rules and Guidelines for the Stress Forum

[MacLeod]

The idea for this new forum was born out of the aftermath of a law enforcement officer, known to most all of the moderators, that took his own life for reasons still unknown. This tragedy may have been prevented had he realized that he was not alone, and maybe reached out for help.

The stress experienced in the LE, PS, and military careers is unique in its own regard. We, as moderators, hope to educate, not only current, but prospective LEO's, Firemen, EMT's, other PS Professionals, and military service members about the dangers of stress.

It's not our intent to counsel, and this forum should not be looked upon as substitution for counseling. The moderators fully expect that some members will want to privately discuss some issues, and we are prepared for that. In those instances, we prefer those board members contact a moderator by Private Message.

For those that want to publicly discuss issues in this forum, we ask that board members adhere to a higher level of decorum. Disrespect for fellow members or their posts; openly hostile remarks; insensitivity; ridicule; will not be tolerated. Those committing such an offense will be immediately banned.

It is our sincere hope to educate and take care of our own.

[dmclark]

I'm one of the Mods that have volunteered to work the Stress Forum. I think it's long overdue and can be a great assistance in discussing the stress factors in LE and some of the issues we all deal with on a daily basis. Some of us deal with these stressors better than others, some have some great ideas for stress relief and others are just curious as to what they'll face in LE.

Not only is this for LE personnel, but I would encourage your spouses or significant others to ask questions about the stress on relationships and the family life in general.

Again as Mac stated above, this is a forum and should NOT take the place of professional counseling or seeing your family physician if you think it's required. I've served as both an Instructor on Stress Management for DEA at the FBI Academy and as a Peer Counselor for DEA for over 10 years.

What we CAN provide is some advice and counseling we've given others previously and work with you in dealing with some of these issues.

Remember, the father of Stress Management, Dr. Hans Selye, stated that STRESS is a non-specific response of your body to ANY demand placed upon it. What stresses you might not affect me and vice versa. There are no "right" answers and hopefully, your questions will help not only you, but other readers as well.

Welcome! DM

[MacLeod]

After reading DM's first post here, it's easy to understand why we really needed him, and some of our veterans like ATF SAC, MrJim911, and DelC. They each have butt loads of experience and knowledge in this area.

I want to personally offer my "thanks" to each of them and Bob Amaral, for making this forum a reality. I know that in a few months when we look back on the previous threads, it'll be very clear how "overdue" this forum was, and what a benefit it is, and how lucky we all are for having guys like DM, ATF SAC, MrJim911, and DelC contribiting here.

[ATF SAC]

Not all stress is bad, but it uses you up and creates conditions that need to be mitigated. In high performance situation you can neither relax nor can you go over the top. There is a point of maximum focus and performance. We can talk about things like this here as well. It is the nature of the professions represented here that normal people bring the stress of normal lives to abnormally stressful situations. Per capita folks in this board have a lot more knowledge about the fashions in body armor which should clue us all in.

Once upon a time we watch our fellows go down to stress, all the way to illness and death and said a silent prayer that it had passed us by and a shared a knowing glance that it was out there. Today we do talk about it, and we do watch over one another and we are saving ourselves and our peers. My hope is this is a place where the curious will also come. Maybe one of you will be the one to bring a good peer support program into an agency that needs one.

Those of us who moderate this forum both asked for it to be created and asked to support it. We are counting on our fellow mods and you to help us out.