Resilience Development in Action
Discover practical resilience strategies that transform lives. Join Steve Bisson, licensed mental health counselor, as he guides first responders, leaders, and trauma survivors through actionable insights for mental wellness and professional growth. Each week, dive deep into real conversations about grief processing, trauma recovery, and leadership development. Whether you're a first responder facing daily challenges, a leader navigating high-pressure situations, or someone on their healing journey, this podcast delivers the tools and strategies you need to build lasting resilience. With over 20 years of mental health counseling experience, Steve brings authentic, professional expertise to every episode, making complex mental health concepts accessible and applicable to real-world situations. Featured topics include: • Practical resilience building strategies • First responder mental wellness • Trauma recovery and healing • Leadership development • Grief processing • Professional growth • Mental health insights • Help you on your healing journey Each week, join our community towards better mental health and turn your challenges into opportunities for growth with Resilience Development in Action.
Episodes
Some conversations ask you to sit up a little straighter. This one asks you to relax your shoulders, tell the truth, and feel what you’ve been carrying. We dive into the messy overlap of trauma and grief in first responder and military cultures, where silence is rewarded and honesty is too often punished, and we share a different path built on authenticity, peer support, and practical skills.
Blythe Landry jo...
The hardest conversations often happen in the quiet minutes between calls. We sat down with clinician and co-response partner Amanda Rizoli to explore how real support for first responders is built—on language, trust, and the discipline to show up when services are thin and the need is loud. Amanda works alongside the Milford Police Department’s Family Services Unit and partners with Community Impact, Chris’s Corner R...
In this continued collaboration with Milford TV, we explore how burnout rarely makes a scene—it slips in as irritability, isolation, and the quiet urge to shut out the world. This episode is the conclusion of episode 225 and we open the door on how those whispers grow louder inside the fire service and EMS, why “just call this number” isn’t care, and what it really takes to protect crews before a bad day becomes a dis...
Burnout doesn’t just come from the calls—it grows in the silence after, inside a culture that either catches you or drops you. We sit down with Renae, a former firefighter-paramedic who now coaches first responders on burnout recovery and nervous system regulation, to unpack how leadership betrayal, union politics, and the loss of seasoned mentors quietly shape morale, retention, and the quality of care on scene.
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How do we treat our physical health versus our mental health? Former London Metropolitan Police officer Jonathan Kemp spent 12 years in law enforcement while battling undiagnosed bipolar disorder, depression, and dyslexia—yet refused to seek professional help until his late 30s.
"I was determined to fix myself on my own," Kemp reveals in this powerful conversation. "I saw it as an insult to go ...
The weight of trauma doesn't stay at work—it comes home. For first responders, this reality shapes not just their professional lives but transforms family dynamics, relationships, and personal wellbeing in profound ways that most people never see.
In this revealing conversation, therapist Erin Sheridan shares her unique perspective as both a mental health professional specializing in first responder care...
When a fellow firefighter confessed suicidal thoughts to Adam Neff one night at the firehouse, it changed everything. Despite his decades of experience handling emergencies, Adam found himself unprepared for this particular crisis. That moment became the catalyst for his remarkable transition from assistant chief of operations to licensed professional counselor specializing in first responder mental health.
D...
The weight of caring for others can become unbearable when we forget to care for ourselves. This powerful conversation with Deidre Gestrin, a licensed clinical professional counselor and certified health coach, takes us deep into the reality of burnout among first responders and helping professionals.
Deidre shares her profound personal journey through burnout - a harrowing experience that led her doctor to d...
Steve Bisson welcomes Bill Dwinnells, a licensed mental health counselor with over 30 years of experience and a background as an EMT, to discuss their joint venture, Gambit Counseling, and its innovative approach to first responder mental health.
The conversation explores why traditional mental health services often fall short for first responders. As Dwinnells eloquently explains, "First responders see ...
The IAFF Center of Excellence stands as a sanctuary for firefighters navigating the complex terrain of mental health challenges. In this revealing conversation with Hannah Elmore, Clinical Outreach Coordinator, we explore how this specialized treatment facility has become a lifeline for nearly 4,000 firefighters across North America.
Hannah takes us behind the scenes of this unique 15-acre campus in Maryland,...
In this powerful conversation, Hannah Elmore, Senior Clinical Outreach Coordinator for the IAFF Center of Excellence, reveals the critical role of culturally competent care in supporting firefighter mental health. Drawing from her extensive background in clinical social work and deep immersion in fire service culture, Hannah illuminates the often-overlooked nuances of how mental health challenges uniquely manifest in ...
What happens when a police officer and a counselor not only share their professional expertise but also their marriage journey? In this candid, powerful conversation, Ashley and Dustin Wright bring a unique dual perspective to the challenges facing first responder marriages.
Marriage requires resilience for everyone, but for those in law enforcement, the stakes are particularly high. "Resiliency in law e...
What happens when a police sergeant and a therapist build a life together? Dustin and Ashley Wright open up about their 13-year journey as a first responder couple in this vulnerable and insightful conversation that challenges conventional thinking about trauma, communication, and resilience.
The conversation takes an unexpected turn when Dustin shares how a seemingly routine cardiac arrest call triggered a t...
What happens when men are finally given permission to explore their full emotional range? In this eye-opening conversation that concludes episode 212 with Lee Povey, we delve into the hidden emotional landscapes that many men navigate alone, often without the tools or language to understand their experiences.
The discussion challenges fundamental misconceptions about emotions, particularly for men. "Ther...
What happens when a first responder walks into a therapist's office and shares a traumatic experience so dark that the therapist needs "a few minutes" before responding? For most first responders, this confirms their worst fear: no one can handle their reality. That's why cultural competency isn't just helpful—it's essential.
In this powerful conversation with the founding member...
Turning fifty isn't just about crossing an age threshold—it's about recognizing the human connections that build resilience throughout a lifetime. In this deeply personal episode, therapist Steve Bisson reflects on the relationships that have shaped his capacity for strength, growth, and recovery across five decades.
Steve begins by honoring his parents, whose contrasting yet complementary influence...
What does authentic masculinity look like in a world that teaches boys to hide their emotions from an early age? Leadership coach Lee Povey takes us on his transformative journey from needing to be the hero in every relationship to discovering the profound power of vulnerability.
Growing up with a narcissistic father who saw Lee's achievements only as extensions of himself left him with a deep question t...
Gordon Brewer, a licensed marriage and family therapist with over 25 years of experience, joins Steve to unpack the complex relationship between trauma, grief, and emotional resilience in the first responder community. Their conversation touches on a critical but often overlooked barrier to mental health care—the fear that therapists can't handle the horrific realities first responders face daily.
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What happens when your career ends but your life continues? The Mental Men, Andy Kang, Pat Rice, Chris Gordon, Dennis Sweeney, and Bob Cherney return in this deeply personal exploration of retirement, identity, and finding purpose beyond the job that defined you.
Bob Cherney, recently retired after decades as a therapist, shares his raw experience of waking up each morning still feeling "there's su...
Strength isn't the absence of weakness—it's how we transform our challenges into growth. In this riveting conversation with leadership coach and author Becky Schmooke, we explore stoic philosophy as a misunderstood yet powerful tool for navigating life's inevitable obstacles.
Becky shares her personal journey of using stoicism to overcome a twenty-year battle with bulimia, developing the STOA f...
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