Amid push for PTSD awareness, Weymouth firefighters learn to confront stress, trauma

WEYMOUTH - From car crashes to fatal fires, firefighters often deal with trauma and job-related stress that can have a lingering impact.

As a result, teams of current and retired firefighters from the region serve as a frontline of support to help first responders cope and look out for signs that others in their department may be struggling.

Charlie Popp and Jim Welsh, both retired Boston firefighters and members of one of the state's Critical Incident Stress Management teams, met with Weymouth firefighters this week to discuss coping with stress and suicide awareness among first responders.

"Everyone has stress, but members of the fire service have stress related to work that is compounded by other stressors in life," said Popp, who is the state coordinator for the network of teams.

The state has more than a dozen Critical Incident Stress Management teams that respond to communities following an incident that could impact first responders, such as a line-of-duty death.

"It's a peer-driven, clinically guided approach," said Popp, who recently received a master's degree in social work from Tulane University in New Orleans.

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More frequently, Popp said he has been meeting with departments for preventative education before a tragedy occurs.

"We talk about things to look out for and the ability to be there for one another," he said. "Departments want to know how to reach out and have someone be there."

Popp and Welsh said they try to promote resilience and encourage first responders to address stressful events as they happen so that they can heal.

"Some people don't want to appear weak, but it's a lot harder to ask for help. The weak guy suffers in silence," Popp said.

Weymouth's International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1616 recently launched the "The Heroes Need Heroes, Too" campaign to address the stigma associated with mental health, particularly among first responders.

About 20 percent of firefighters and first responders in the United States deal with post-traumatic stress disorder at some point, compared to 6.8 percent for the general population, according to a study cited by the International Association of Fire Fighters.

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