The emergency
It’s an intense wildfire season. I find myself racing from one evacuation zone to the next as flames threaten my hometown. As I strap on my gear and throw myself into the job, my thoughts keep drifting to my family and whether our home is still standing.
Every siren and radio call tightens the knot in my chest, but I can’t stop working. After years of fighting fires in these woods, I’ve learned to stay stoic. Admitting that I’m struggling feels almost impossible.
At night, I lie awake replaying my day, haunted by smoke-filled skies and images of burned-out homes. As residents demand faster action and clearer answers, I feel a growing sense of distress. I’m torn between duty and fear.
Friends encourage me to talk about what I’m going through. I insist I’m “managing” — hiding moments of panic behind a calm exterior. But the constant unease, hypervigilance, and pressure to stay strong are wearing me down.
I keep it all to myself, but this is challenging my belief that I can do this without asking for help.
How CanEMERG can help
We have fact sheets, tool kits, and resources for responders like Brad:
- Fact sheet: Moral challenges, moral distress, & moral injury
- Fact sheet: Building social connections
- Evacuations and your mental health
- Badge of Life Canada: Peer support and crisis resources for public safety personnel
- PeerOnCall: Anonymous peer support for PSP that is available via text or phone
Along with guidance for the practitioners, managers, and administrators who direct the system’s response:
- Community mental health and wellness recovery tool kit
- Guidelines to support staff in disaster preparedness
- A guide to managing stress for disaster responders and first responders: A downloadable booklet published by the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Help is within reach.
