In crisis? Call or text 988 — Veterans press 1. Safe Call Now: (206) 459-3020
Resources
We would rather point you to a dozen excellent, properly sourced resources than bury you in a hundred. Every entry names its publisher, its audience, and the date a reviewer last checked it.
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, call 911. These lines are confidential and answered by people who understand this work.
Call or text 988
Dial 988, then press 1
(206) 459-3020
(800) 267-5463
(888) 731-3473
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (SAMHSA-funded)
Free, confidential, 24/7 support by call, text, or chat anywhere in the United States. Veterans and service members can press 1 for the Veterans Crisis Line.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceU.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — National Center for PTSD
The most authoritative plain-language library on trauma and PTSD in the U.S., including how evidence-based treatments such as CPT, PE, and EMDR actually work, plus self-help tools and family guidance.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
Federal guidance on occupational stress, substance use, and behavioral health supports written for responder populations and the agencies that employ them.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceInternational Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF)
Peer support training, behavioral health awareness curricula, and treatment navigation built specifically for fire and EMS members and their families.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceFirst Responder Center for Excellence (NFFF affiliate)
Research summaries and department-ready toolkits on behavioral health, cancer and cardiac risk, and building a wellness program that survives leadership turnover.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceInternational Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF)
The reference point for how peer-driven critical incident response is structured, trained, and bounded — useful before an agency stands up or revises a CISM team.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceNational Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC)
A help line plus a resource library aimed at volunteer and combination departments, where formal employee assistance programs are often unavailable.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceCopline
Answered by retired officers trained as active listeners. Available to officers and their families, and independent of any department reporting chain.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceSafe Call Now
A confidential, 24-hour resource for public safety employees and their families seeking treatment referrals, including substance use and mental health placement.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceThe Code Green Campaign
EMS-focused education and first-person accounts that normalize help-seeking in a discipline often left out of responder wellness programming.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceMilitary OneSource (U.S. Department of Defense)
Non-medical counseling, relationship support, and relocation and caregiving resources for service members, veterans, and their families at no cost.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceNational Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
Plain-language explanations of conditions and treatment, plus free family education courses and local support groups for spouses and relatives.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceHarbor of Grace Recovery Center
Substance use and mental health treatment program serving police, fire, veterans, federal agents, dispatchers, and corrections officers.
Reviewed August 2026 by Hayley Stokely, First Responder Forward LLC
Open resourceEntries are selected because they come from a named, accountable publisher — a federal agency, a national association, a university, or an established public safety organization — and because they are written in language a responder or family member can actually use.
Each entry lists its publisher and the date a reviewer last confirmed the link and the accuracy of our summary. Where research is described, we describe it as evidence-informed and point to the original source rather than restating findings we cannot cite.
This library is educational. It is not clinical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and it is not a substitute for care from a licensed clinician. If you need a clinician or mental health coach who understands this work, start with the therapist and coach directory.
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