Adam: Shots Fired; The Call That Changed Everything

As a child, Adam watched police cars race past his window, dreaming of becoming an “ER car man.” That dream came true through military service and police work—until a call to Walmart on April 8, 2016, changed everything. Confronted by a woman with a hatchet, Adam made a split-second decision to use deadly force. Though cleared by investigators, the incident triggered a silent battle with PTSD. “I knew what I had done. I changed lives. I took her life, I changed my life,” he says.

What follows is a brutally honest account of self-destruction. Adam reveals how he drowned his trauma in alcohol, numbed himself through casual encounters, and pushed away those who cared about him. Most shocking is the institutional response—after years of exemplary service, his department issued a cease-and-desist order to stop speaking about his mental health and eventually terminated him. “I was completely ghosted by everybody,” Adam recalls.

After proper mental health treatment arranged by his sister, Adam returned to policing as a captain at a department that actively supports his mental health advocacy. He now works to shatter the stigma around first responder trauma through his organization.

Do you know someone struggling with invisible wounds? Adam's message is clear: healing is possible, help is available, and no one should suffer in silence. 

Connect with Adam:

Website: StopTheThreatStopTheStigma.org 

Email: [e-mail]

Connect with Jen:
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/ineedbluepodcast/
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp1q8SfA_hEXRJ4EaizlW8Q
Facebook:  
 https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61567221068683
 Website:
https://ineedblue.net/
Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/i-need-blue/id1567450935

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Purchase my book or Audiobook: Why I Survived:  How Sharing My Story Helped Me Heal from Dating Abuse, Armed Robbery, Abduction, and Other Forms of Trauma by Jennifer Lee
 https://whyisurvived.com/

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