Episode #32- Greg Grogan: Mental Health for First Responders

On this episode of Real Talks on the Rocks, I sit down with Greg Grogan. Greg is a current law enforcement officer and co-founder of The Overwatch Collective: a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing attention to mental health for military and first responders. Greg talks about his organization and how they work to provide first responders with free therapy. Greg also talks about the current issues in law enforcement that are likely to be causing some of the mental anguish public service personnel face everyday. You can reach out to Greg and The Overwatch Collective at: https://theoverwatchcollective.com Thank you to all of my supporters who are supporting me on Patreon and allowing me to grow this channel! Your support of this channel allows me to continue to provide you with better and better content. Click the link below to access this episode's bonus content: https://patreon.com/realtalksontherocks For all of the links to the other avenues to view/listen to my show, you can visit my website at: https://realtalksontherocks.com There you will find links to Apple Podcasts, Spotify as well as my Patreon page. You can also follow me on: Facebook: https://facebook.com/realtalksontherocks Instagram: https://instagram.com/realtalksontherocks Twitter: https://twitter.com/realtalksrocks #mentalhealth #police #firstresponders Chapter list: 00:00- Preview 01:06- Intro 03:45- How The Overwatch Collective got started 06:14- Exposure in Law Enforcement 08:10- Veteran transition to civilian life 10:45- Being aware of what veterans have seen overseas: EMDR training 14:38- Entering the Law Enforcement career 19:05- Keeping the “image” 28:00- It starts with the Family 33:55- New police and firefighters spending money too fast 41:55-All you have is that “badge”?? 45:35- Is it lack of resources or lack of “taking the first step”? 51:22- Building Trust in an organization 56:50- End of Watch (movie) 58:25- It just takes “one” person 1:00:00- what makes “The Overwatch Collective” so impactful 1:05:35- Dealing with a traumatic call for service 1:08:00-Seeking therapy 1:14:50- What is your form of therapy? 1:18:50- Relationships as a first responder 1:27:40- How mental stress builds up over time 1:29:20- Physical Fitness 1:36:20- How organizations can help their staff 1:39:50- Final Thoughts