With the growing numbers of active shooter incidents, the question arises, are first Responders suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)? The Department of Veteran Affairs defines PTSD as, “a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event, like combat, a natural disaster, a car accident, or sexual assault.” (Veterans Affairs) In respects to Police Officers, Ellen Kirschman explains it well, “These are hard times to be a cop. There are days when it seems like the actions of a few have tainted the entire law enforcement profession. Policing is a complex profession, far more complex than most people understand. What other job requires you to be combat ready at the same time…show more content… Kirschman explains this perfectly in respects to officer involved shootings. “When an officer is involved in a shooting, he will temporarily experience physical, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms. Time slows down or speeds up. Hands or weapons appear larger than life. Gunshots don't sound the way they do on the firing range. And afterwards? Memory degrades. So does patience. Isolation increases. It's hard to sleep, to stop thinking about the shooting or to engage in normal family activities. The officer is "dieseling at the curb," her body responding to triggers as though the cop was still in fight for her survival. None of us get to vote on these reactions. They are involuntary, generated by a storm of stress hormones and neuro-chemicals activated by the human response to threats against survival. Normal or not, post-traumatic stress can make an officer feel as though she's going crazy.” (Kirschman) First Responders that arrived on scene at the Pulse Nightclub did not expect to see the amount of deceased people inside the building. The initial responding officers did not expect to see or hear multiple shots being fired, knowing innocent people were being shot. No one I know in my professional or personal life, could or would cope with a situation such as an active shooter incident and be able to “shake it off” if you
