stress relief

There are lots of different ways to relieve the stress that we face when we have to deal with the death and destruction related to the job we do as firefighter/medics. When we have a real bad call, we usually have a debrief right when we get back to station. People deal with stress differently. It could be going for a walk along the beach, watching a favorite show on television, or enjoying a hobby. What really helps me to deal with stress relief is my favorite hobby. I build model cars; whether they are street rods, muscle cars, NASCAR, or drag cars. I also have one of the best listeners that doesn't talk back, just sits there and listens and looks at me as if she is saying, "It's OK to cry, I don't mind." It's my dog Abbie. She knows for some ungodly reason when I need somebody to listen.

When we do have to deal with a sudden death or destruction we all watch each other for different signs of stress. They do have counselors available through mental health clinics to help us deal with what we just had to go through. Yes, I have had to deal with death, whether it is natural caused or sudden trauma or illness.

I am lucky to have a girlfriend that knows how stressful this job can be. She is a fromer firefighter/medic from the Dayton, Ohio area. She has seen a lot of the same needless death and detsruction I have. She knows when I want a human to talk to or she knows when to leave me alone. That is a big help in itself in dealing with what we have witnessed.

Connected to the Pager

There are times when it can be exciting to do this job. Yes, we do have a life other than firefighting. I love to hunt and fish, ride snowmobiles, dirt bikes, and I do work another job besides being a firefighter/medic. I carry a pager with me 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days a year. I have been inside of burning buildings which could have taken my life. And all of this for a little more than $8 a hr. Not much for risking your life.


I have missed out on family gatherings, birthdays, special dinners with my girlfriend amongst other things when the pager goes off. It has a habit of going off when you least expeect it to. Especially at 3 in the morning when you have a 9 am class.



The one fire that I remember most was when Orchard Creek AFC home burned to the ground. The fire started about 2 in the afternoon right at shift change at the home, which turned out to be a blessing. I was downtown eating at a restaurant when the pager went off. My girlfriend asked what it was and I replied "Oh it's probably a medical run." discpatch informed us that we had a fully involved building with people in it. Luckily they had both day and afternoon shifts on at the home and they got everybody out by the time we had arrived with trucks. I could see the smoke from downtown and knew that we had a working fire. The stress of not knowing whether or not everybody was out of the building was extremely high at that point. Our station is located less than half a mile from the home.

As far as medical runs go, the ones that bother me most are ones that involve children. I don't know why. I guess that it's that I feel they shouldn't have to have to suffer needlessly. I have seen where a child was sick and have seen where they have been severly injuried. Why does that have to happen to that little one I ask? I don't have a answer for that. I have attended Incedent debriefs when little ones have been involved. That is almost a standard for most Depts. in this area.

I guess that I do this job for the love of helping my fellow citizens. Alot of people say that we are crazy for doing what we do. We run into a burning building when most people are running to get out of them. And we don't get alot of money for doing it. Does that make us crazy?

Education In Fire Service

Another aspect of firefighting is the countless hours that we as firefighters put into training. We have to go through fire school which consits of approximately 240 hours of both class room and practical training. This does not count the hours that are required for hazardous material, vehicle extrication, pump operations, emergency vehicle operation and any other specialized training that comes along.
We also have endless hours of training at station level to keep us proficient in our skills. All of this is just for us to meet state requirements.
There are colleges that offer courses that will take our education level higher. One of these Colleges is Lake Supirior State University in Saulte Saint Marie Michigan. They offer a Bachelor's degree in fire science which would include all of the state minimum requirements and expand our education to include things like fire inspections, arson investigation, building construction, and other classes. There are also classes offered in tactical operations and managing fire manpower on the fire grounds.
With the aftermath of 9/11 and the start of Homeland Security, there are also NIMS (National Incident Management System) which we have to take in order to meet state requirements. The National Fire Academy in Maryland also offers classes that we can take online to further our education. And this is just the begining of your education for the fire service.
If you decide to start going on medical calls you have to at least have Medical First Responder training. Then you have EMT Basic, Specialist and then Paramedic. First Responder is approxitmatly 120 hours of both class and pratical instruction. EMT is approxitmately 6 months long. The same for EMT specialist. And Paramedic is a two year comitment to schooling. And then you have to do continuing education to keep your liscencure current.
They wonder why alot of us leave the fire service for these reasons.

My life as a rural firefighter

I chose this subject to try and educate people to the problems faced by fire fighters in a rural setting. One of the biggest problems that I have seen is people that do not yeild the right of way to us when we are responding to a call. Another problem that I have seen is when people have either a cell phone stuck to their ear, radio turned up all the way with that heavy thumping of bass, so where they don't hear the sirens behind them. The trucks that we drive weigh approxitmately 24,000 lbs. and can not stop on a dime as most people think. We have to undergo countless hours of training to take on vehicle operation.