Copy of WHO WE ARE
THE FIRST RESPONDERS MENTAL HEALTH ALLIANCE

The First Responders Mental Health Alliance is a collaboration of first responders and mental health professionals who seek to improve mental health for first responders through education, awareness, counseling, and training.

We achieve these goals through multiple programs that address the unique challenges first responders face in areas of trauma resiliency and recovery, marriage and family, sex, drugs, or alcohol addictions, depression and suicide ideology, and career burnout.
Of particular focus is evidence based training that helps departments become healthy, mindful, and resilient against common mental health challenges. Often referred to as "Innoculation Training" or "Pre-Trauma Training," we teach methods that have been proven to reduce the likelihood of trauma becoming post-traumatic. We also teach tools that speed recovery from post-traumatic issues when they do occur.

We believe there is no substitute for a professional therapist, but every first responder should know simple basic ways to self-assess and self-treat mental injuries the way they would be expected to treat physical ones. 
Some of our training is unconventional, but what we teach has been proven to work in other fields that require mental resiliency. 

Many of the therapy modalities that first responders and combat veterans now find most effective were once considered unconventional. 

Our conferences, training seminars, and retreats incorporate what we are convinced is an effective blend of fundamental and newer information that balances peer support programs and chaplaincy outreaches with mechanisms for both prevention and intervention of mental debilitation in place.

We also educate first responder agencies on finding the best therapists and treatment centers that can help with the specific mental health issues first responders face.
We invite you to explore and discover our programs: Minding the Badge conferences, Peer Support Training, Peer Support Networking Luncheons, and Marriage & Family retreats. You can also learn more about our methods and topics covered in these programs by visiting Minding the Badge Mental Health.
H I S T O R I C A L    T I M E L I N E
July 27, 2017
Our grassroots beginning under the name Blue Banquet Outreach used great food to attract police and civilians together for luncheons that raised awareness of the mental health challenges of police officers.

May 24, 2018
Launched GetHELP.blue--a free and confidential counseling outreach for police officers in North Texas.

September 30, 2018
Expanded GetHELP.blue and our other services to include all first responders, now reaching into more than 60 cities in Texas.

August 26, 2018
In an effort to reach more first responders with information on free & confidential mental health services, we launched Blue Banquet Outreach: On Tour! and went on location to feed police, firefighters, EMS, 911 dispatchers, and ER/Trauma staff across multiples cities. 

December 31, 2018
Achieved a milestone of directly reaching nearly 4,000 first responders in private, city, state, and federal agencies in only 15 months.

January 1, 2019
The First Responders Mental Health Alliance was formed as a nonprofit umbrella organization to operate a wide array of services to first responders. Blue Banquet Outreach and GetHELP.blue would continue under this new entity, but newer programs in areas of training and education would be developed to counter mental health stigmas, while empowering first responders with better mental health tools.



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