John Rose of Oak Bluffs: Firefighters and Mental Health

 

John Rose of Oak Bluffs: How PTSD Affects Firefighters

John Rose of Oak Bluffs explains that a volunteer firefighter is often unpaid. They save people from fires and other emergencies. They respond to emergency calls, as well as put out and prevent the spread of fires, and are exposed to all the hazards of a full-time firefighter. Volunteer firefighters are also trained to administer first aid to people with injuries. 

Volunteer firefighters work in different types of situations. They work through fires in houses or buildings, where they may need to put out electrical or cooking fires, or fires caused by lightning, as well as those caused by other accidents. They also work with other firefighters in the event of a forest fire, which is uncontrolled and sometimes large-scale.

Volunteer firefighters are also present after road accidents. These incidents occur during inclement weather, such as thunderstorms or hailstorms, when the number of accidents spike.

Speaking of accidents, they also help with hazardous materials incidents that involve harmful chemicals, batteries, and even the gear they wear to protect themselves have harmful chemicals, explains John Rose of Oak Bluffs.

Volunteer firefighters also do wellness checks. They visit a person's home along with the police to inspect and confirm their well-being.

As you can see, for firefighters, every day can be an emergency.

John Rose of Oak Bluffs says that they constantly rush into a burning building and run head-first into other disasters while others can only hope to rush out.

All of this constant, intense action takes a toll.

Anyone exposed to stressful events like what a firefighter is exposed to is at more risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder, otherwise known as PTSD.

New studies indicate that PTSD also leads to problems in their intimate relationships.

Firefighters experiencing PTSD symptoms often experience interpersonal problems as well as relationship stress, which may be due to emotion regulation difficulties.

There are also negative alterations in cognition as well as mood. These changes were especially relevant to difficulties in regulating emotions and feelings of satisfaction in relationships.

Difficulty regulating emotion also seems to have negative and even harmful effects on couple intimacy, notes John Rose from Oak Bluffs. Individuals who have heightened emotion regulation difficulties demonstrate a heightened lack of satisfaction in a relationship, often leading them to do things that they would not normally do. They also exhibit an avoidance of closeness or emotion towards things they once loved.

Researchers note that PTSD symptom severity has been negatively associated with relationship satisfaction. It is also positively associated with emotion regulation difficulties.

These findings emphasize the importance of understanding the associations between interpersonal functioning among firefighters and PTSD.

Moreover, John Rose points out that difficulties in the regulation of emotion may provide a path for clinically treating PTSD symptoms and restoring functioning relationships among firefighters.

John Rose of Oak Bluffs is passionate about public safety, earning certifications, including Fire Prevention Officer and Fire Officer 1. In his free time, he enjoys golf, fishing, hiking, skiing, and bike riding, embracing both community dedication and an adventurous spirit. For more on John and his commitment to impacting the lives of Oak Bluffs residents, click this link.