FARMERS BRANCH POLICE DEPTMENT Emotional Survival for Law Enforcement Officer K. Johnson #2528 6/9/2015 The importance of emotional survivor is vital for law enforcement to perform duties at a high level Officers must learn how to manage stress levels, which are important in today's policing. More needs to be done for officer stress within agencies, which will increase survivors and lessen victims. Cops and their families do manner, along with communities and neighborhoods they serve.Being a law enforcement officer is tough in today’s society. Media attention mainly focuses on the negative, leaving out the positive. With all the negative views of law enforcement and all the challenges that officers are faced with, law enforcement personnel must perform duties at the highest level that displays integrity and fai ess, Effective policing is crucial to gain the publi trust The emotional stress that the job brings at times can be overwhelming, motional survival for law enforcement is vital. It can lessen misconduct amongst law enforcement officers and create a healthy environment in today’s world of policing. The journey throughout a police officer's career is unforgettable. Many challenges will occur that law enforcement officers are expected to deal with. Every officer remembers in the beginning how exciting they were of being that rookie officer. As years proceed, some negative views occur, causing low moral within an agency. Some officers look forward to retirement and count down those days. This is caused by the stress over a period of time that officers have to gain control of. It stress takes over, families are affected, ‘The end results are divorce rates and child misbehavior in families. Finding all the pieces to the puzzle and putting everything together becoming that loyal, dedicated and highly motivated officer will lessen stress on officers and their families. Officer survival is crucial in daily operations. Officers must exhibit safety practices to be effective in ensuring the safety of others, The importance of officer safety is known by each, which is a key survival trait. The rates are slowly rising in felony offenses against law enforcement, Officers must remain vigilant at all times and continuously use awareness to prevent such acts. Though these incidents continue to occur, suicide by officer is be oming a bigger issue. Much attention is needed in this area to strengthen survival of officers. Emotional stress occurs most often and denial sets in. Officers feel that they have solved man} issues intheir career and can cope with anything, but this is not always the case, Families are effective and stress levels are raised. ‘There needs to be focus in this area, helping officers in need of emotional strengthening, ‘The organizational role in helping officers cope with emotional stress can save lives. ‘The actions of misconduct are lessened with much attention focused on officer stress. Communities and neighborhoods are the main focus of policing, but more needs to be done for officers and their families, The relationship of officer survival and stress brings on challenges that face police in America. One must remain strong and vigilant to fight crime and personal challenges to be an eff ive officer. The constant alertness and awareness to perform police duties safely defines hyperv is crucial for officer lance. Displaying hyperv ty and survival. With this, stress levels tend to rise because officers are constantly scanning surroundings for potential dangers. The biological rollercoaster during such alertness can affect family relationships. Long-term effects of hypervigilance can be career ending if not managed properly. ‘This is why exercise, healthy eating habits, and emotional control are important. Law enforcement officers must continue to exhibit emotional survival tactics. Being an emotional survivor means maintaining control of personal lives and not letting your problems become overwhelming. Maintaining a good balance of life outside of police work can bring on positive changes for families and peers, Emotional fitness along with physical fitness will prolong an officer’s career, keeping them healthy after police work, Emotional survival for law enforcement is a topic that needs attention. Much focus is on policing that relates to making others safe, but lack the focus of men and women in blue.