Post-Traumatic Stress, Sleep Disturbances, and the Impact on First Responder Wellness

In January 2019, I transitioned to higher education after spending nearly 25 years as a law enforcement professional. During my time in law enforcement, I worked for two mid-sized agencies in Southern California. The best years of my tenure were spent working as a detective in a special victim’s unit. I would spend six years in this capacity dealing with complex cases involving our most vulnerable populations.

Serving as a detective was undoubtedly stressful. Post-retirement, I still think about the challenging cases, the anxiety, and the dark days of worrying about the victims and their families on my caseload. During those days, sleep was especially tough, as I had no regular sleep schedule, and when I did manage to fall asleep, I was often burdened with nightmares, anxiety, and worries.

The prolonged bouts of sleeplessness can be debilitating for those who are on-call, those who have worked shift work, or worked around the clock in a helping profession. Lack of sleep has been proven to impact mental and emotional health adversely. According to Chellappa & Aeschbach (2022),those who work shift work are at increased risk for mental illness, depression,anxiety, and post-traumatic stress.  

Lack of sleep poses a significant health risk to those in helping professions.  Specifically, lack of sleep risks a first responder’s well-being and job performance.  Disrupted sleep is a symptom of – and exacerbates – post-traumatic stress.  An 18-month sleep study of 5,000 police officers in North America conducted by the Boston affiliate of Harvard Medical School in 2011 found that 40% of first responders – specifically officers - screened positive for sleep disorders – this figure is double the general population’s rate. Sleepiness and insomnia are common in police officers due to sleep pattern disruption. Approximately 46% of respondents in the Boston study reported falling asleep while driving their patrol vehicle (Shanta et al.,2011). Disrupted sleep and lack of sleep impairs cognitive function and heightens emotional reactivity, which may lead to potential errors in judgment and poor decision-making in the field.

I knew I needed to do something to improve my sleep, so I reached out to a celebrity designer friend, Kelli Ellis, and asked for her help optimizing my space for sleep.   Kelli gave me some incredible ideas about optimizing my area for the best possible rest. Kelli recommended organizing my space for optimal sleep; this included room darkening shades, cooler thermostat settings for the bedroom, and a quiet part of the home. Kelli shared other insights that allowed me to optimize my space, get better and deeper sleep and achieve bouts of REM sleep.  

I started researching dream, dream re-scripting, and dream processing, which happens in REM sleep, as you may know.  One of my colleagues facilitates discussions on dream re-scripting; for those in the helping professions, I would encourage you to learn more about this exercise.  

As first responders, members of the public safety community are charged with safeguarding the public and building public trust. To be successful in this regard, they must be rested, balanced, professional, and thoughtful in their approach. To this end, those who have well-developed physical, mental, and emotional stress management skills and coping mechanisms are better prepared to carry out the mission of serving their respective communities.

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Dr. Kathryn Hamel, Ph.D., is the Chief Executive Officer of The Hecht Trauma Institute (HTI). The mission of HTI is to provide education, information, and services to empower and support people affected by trauma.

Kathryn is a retired law-enforcement lieutenant, distinguished academic, dedicated philanthropist, sought-after speaker, and author of Body, Mind, and Badge: Strategies for Navigating Trauma & Resilience in Law Enforcement.

During her 25-year career as an active-duty law-enforcement officer, she investigated hundreds of cases involving rape, domestic assault, child sexual abuse, and other forms of violence. Her caseload enabled her to assist victims of these traumatic events in navigating the criminal justice system while seeking justice on their behalf.

She is a regular presenter at national and international conferences related to trauma, abuse, suicide prevention, and interpersonal violence.

Preparing for a post-law enforcement career, she earned a vocational teaching credential, a level 1 and level 2 trauma and resilience certification from Florida State University, and a doctorate in Public Safety Leadership from Capella University. She also holds a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Chapman University and a Bachelor of Arts in Occupational Studies and Vocational Education from California State University, Long Beach.

Transitioning from law enforcement to academia, California Southern University recruited her to serve as the Dean of the School of Criminal Justice and Criminology. She was later promoted to Senior Vice-President of Human Resources and Organizational Development. Concurrently, Kathryn was also responsible for creating and implementing an 18-month post-graduate leadership academy.

A committed community volunteer, she has almost three decades of experience guiding non-profit and charitable organizations. She is currently a Board Member of KinderVision; a nonprofit co-founded by her late mother, Ashby Sebastian, dedicated to mitigating childhood exploitation and sexual abuse.  

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References:

Ellis, K. (2021) Design Psychology – Residential Design. Designer Kelli Ellis https://kelliellis.com/design-psychology-coach/

National Center on Sleep Disorders.  Research: NIH Sleep Disorders Research Plan. Bethesda,MD: National Institutes of Health; 2011. NIH publication 11-7820. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/prof/sleep/sleep_splan.htm. 

Pearsall, B., (2012) Sleep Disorders, Work Shifts and Officer Wellness. Retrieved from:nij.ojp.gov: 
https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/sleep-disorders-work-shifts-and-officer-wellness

Shantha M.W., Laura K. Barger, Steven W. Lockley, Steven A. Shea, Wei Wang, Christopher P. Landrigan, Conor S. O’Brien, Salim Qadri, Jason P.Sullivan, Brian E. Cade, Lawrence J. Epstein, David P. White, and Charles A.Czeisler, “Sleep Disorders, Health, and Safety in Police Officers” Exit Notice, JAMA 306 (2011): 2567-2578.

Chellappa, S.L., & Aeschbach, D., (2022). Sleep, and Anxiety: From Mechanisms to Interventions. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 10.1016/j.smrv.2021.101583, 61, (101583).