Bouncing Back from Trauma: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide for Police Readiness - Softcover

Gallo PhD, Frank J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1546873201 ISBN 13: 9781546873204

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2017

Synopsis

Exposure to traumatic events is a natural part of police work. Building individual capacity through increased psychological flexibility before and after trauma exposure is critical to sustaining a mission-ready police force.

Bouncing Back from Trauma is the essential step-by-step guide to help police officers recover from trauma, grow, and live life with more purpose and vitality. In this easy-to-follow self-help approach, you’ll feel empowered to take charge of your well-being, learn to overcome ineffective and self-defeating patterns of behavior, re-engage with who and what’s important to you, and be more likely to remain employed and continue to serve your community.

Other uniformed service professionals who have experienced trauma can use this book: military service members, firefighters, and rescue workers (paramedics and emergency medical technicians). Other trauma workers, such as emergency room nurses, doctors, mental health professionals, and disaster relief workers, can also use it. This book can help family members, friends, and mental health professionals provide a supportive environment in which you can recover.

In Bouncing Back from Trauma, clinical psychologist and retired police officer, Frank Gallo, brings you through training that features specific exercises, metaphors, stories, and language that simply work because they rest on the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and the ACT Matrix. This book is the first ACT self-help workbook for police officers and other uniformed service professionals recovering from traumatic stress. It will give you the tools to live more fully, feeling greater purpose at work and everywhere else in life.

The exercises and worksheets inside this book and more resources are available at www.actforpolice.com.

About this title

About the Author:

Frank J. Gallo, PhD, is the Director of Clinical Operations at the Brattleboro Retreat (VT). The Retreat is one of the oldest psychiatric hospitals in the country, providing inpatient, outpatient, and residential levels of care. Dr. Gallo also provides senior leadership of the Retreat’s specialized and dedicated treatment program for law enforcement, fire, military, corrections, and emergency medical service personnel.

His clinical experience includes directing the Traumatic Stress Recovery Center at the Center for Human Development (MA) and directing the psychological health program at the Massachusetts Air National Guard 104th Fighter Wing.

In addition to Dr. Gallo’s clinical experience, he was an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at Western New England University—a tenured position he left to dedicate his work to helping uniformed service professionals. Dr. Gallo is a retired police officer from the Cranston, RI, Police Department. His law enforcement experience included uniformed patrol, community policing, detective work, staff training, and work on the special reaction team that involved using specialized tactics and weapons to resolve high-threat situations.

Dr. Gallo is the author of numerous articles in the field of police psychology and police training manuals. He has provided recruit and in-service training for uniformed service professionals. He has presented and consulted nationally and internationally on issues related to policing and the use of force, and nationally on the use of acceptance and commitment therapy in uniformed service settings.

Review:

"As a thirty-year officer in a large city police department, I can say that this book hits home. It's an easy read that spells out what traumatized officers deal with in the aftermath of a critical incident. Step by step, Dr. Gallo provides practical exercises for officers to bounce back from trauma and to improve their performance at work, home, or wherever they are. The guidance is essential for any police officer wishing to understand trauma and its effects. I'll be sharing this must read with officers in my survival training classes."

-- Sgt. Robert K. Boehm, officer survival, and defensive tactics instructor, SWAT commander, patrol supervisor, and union president
"In Bouncing Back from Trauma, Dr. Gallo has created a relatable and invaluable resource for police officers dealing with trauma or the broader consequences of exposure to critical incidents and human suffering. His approach is based on both his experiences as a police officer and professional training in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). Having delivered the Crosshairs approach in a large municipal police department both in training and treatment environments, I can attest to its effectiveness and relevance to police officers. The easy to follow strategies are also well suited as a self-directed guide."

-- Michael J. Craw, PhD, ABPP, board certified in clinical psychology and police and public safety psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology
"This is a wonderful book. It's written in the language of first responders. In other words, it's not written in psychobabble. Using this book, first responders will quickly learn what works when it comes to dealing with the trauma that they routinely encounter. Dr. Gallo's extensive experience in policing and working with uniformed service professionals has helped him craft a usable, dare I say "tactical" book filled with practical tools that any first responder will be able to use right away on the job and in their personal lives. This book is also a must read for practitioners in the business of helping first responders. The book offers wonderful insights into the lives of first responders and how they go about dealing with trauma."

-- Kevin Polk, PhD, psychologist and creator of the ACT Matrix
"This is an exceptionally well-written workbook that can be used by first responders and emergency workers of all kinds to alleviate symptoms arising from exposure to trauma. The workbook is grounded in ACT and written in a style that is readily understandable. The workbook can be used independently as a stand alone, evidence-based approach to reducing and resolving these symptoms. As director of a psychological services bureau in a large metropolitan Sheriff's department, I highly recommend it."

-- Steven E. Sultan, PhD, ABPP, board certified in police and public safety psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 1546873201
• ISBN 13: 9781546873204
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 116