Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Opening up to others can be very difficult for some people, particularly veterans and first responders.
The Reboot group on Thursdays at American Legion Post 49 in Warsaw offers the curriculum plus peer support for those two groups to speak and listen to others who have witnessed or gone through similar experiences.
“The group is called Reboot, and the curriculum is a trauma-focused curriculum,” said Dr. Siquilla Liebetrau, clinical psychologist and vice president of clinical services at Bowen Health. “Specifically, it’s designed for first responders, as well as veterans, and it really focuses on that shared experience of traumatic events that may have happened on the field, that we have some skills and techniques that we can teach in the group to help people kind of deal with those, whether it’s memories or flashbacks or maybe even now reintegrating into society. Or maybe not wanting to tell your loved ones because you don’t want to inadvertently traumatize them based on some of the things you’ve maybe seen or experienced.”
She said it’s a safe space to talk about and get some help for those.
In the veterans and first responder cultures, there is often times a tendency for them to not talk about their experiences and trauma.
“But, research really shows us that it is helpful and important to talk about these things. It’s especially helpful when you have peers around you so you have shared experience as well to just help normalize - ‘It’s not just me feeling this way, somebody else is feeling this way.’ And we can help each other, in that peer support group, to say, ‘This has helped for me’ or ‘This has worked for me. Do you want to try that, too?’” Liebetrau explained.
Sometimes there’s struggles around substance use that came from the experiences they had, or suicidal thoughts or relationship problems.
“These are all big things that come up as a result of some traumatic events that haven’t been worked through,” she said.
Expanded Program
Kosciusko County Sheriff Jim Smith, who also is a veteran, said the initiative started out as for veterans, but expanded to include first responders. Both veterans and first responders often are reluctant to talk about what they’ve seen or done.
“Honestly, I think back like when I even started my career, it wasn’t always the popular thing to talk about maybe some of those uncomfortable thoughts or feelings that you were having on, let’s say, a bad scene. In fact, the mentality was always, ‘Well, you signed up for it, kid. People are counting on you now, suck it up and get to the next call,’” Smith said.
He said that’s shifted - in the right way - to where it’s more socially acceptable and common, especially by younger officers, to be more inclined to talk about things “before it gets out of control. Because I think we’ve all seen what happens if you just keep bearing it and bearing it and bearing it. It can kind of lean into addiction and other things.
“I love that this is just another opportunity for veterans and for first responders to be able to have that outlet to where they can get in front of it before it becomes more of a persistent problem down the line.”
Smith said, in his experience, a veteran won’t always open up to just a deputy that has never served in the military. “That was the whole premise behind us starting the Battle Buddy program that we did at the sheriff’s office, where now you’re putting veterans in front of them that can actually kind of relate to some of those experiences and deployments and all the things. Well, first responders is a lot of the same in that regard.”
He said he loved that Reboot is a collaborative effort and “hey, you’re not in this by yourself.”
Liebetrau said that for those who do want to talk, they often don’t want to talk to their loved ones because they don’t want to recount the awful experiences of what they saw and lived through.
“They don’t want to hurt their loved ones, and so it’s helpful then to talk with other folks that have had similar experiences because you know they’re going to understand. You know they’ve lived, maybe not through the same thing, but similar things,” she said. “There’s more of a sense of, ‘OK, it’s OK to share here. I’m not going to shock anybody, I’m not going to hurt anybody.’”
Smith added to that by saying, “It’s absolutely OK to not be OK, right? If there’s a moment or if there’s a call that’s not sitting OK with you, that’s OK. Not only is it OK, it’s somewhat normal.”
“It’s very normal,” agreed Liebetrau.
“If you think about first responders and the calls they’re going to, on things most humans are running away from; and veterans the same thing, you’re being exposed” to things you would never otherwise see in real life, Smith said.
Peer Support
Liebetrau said the program is a peer support group, meaning other men and women, who have been through similar experiences, are there to share experiences and conversations with.
“That’s a very important piece. So it’s not just a therapist telling you what to do or how to do it. You’re talking amongst each other and helping each other,” she said. “And then the other component to this is, there is a trained therapist that will provide some skills and strategies. That’s evidence-based, that’s research for these types of problems you’re dealing with. So it’s not therapy specifically. This is not going to be therapy. It is a support group. But there will be some skills and strategies shared that you can then apply to your life circumstances.”
Smith said one of his biggest concerns as a sheriff is the mental health of all of his employees. “So this is like music to my ears, just to know that there’s another resource, if they so choose to utilize it, that they can get in front of some of these things. And not everyone needs to know about it. They can have conversations and be in a casual setting, if they choose to do that, and I think oftentimes what they’ll find is just knowing that there’s someone else out there who has a similar experience and that they’re not alone. It’ll do wonders for them and their welfare, I believe,” he said.
Stepping Up
Mark Groeller, Bowen Health executive director for Northwest Indiana, said Reboot has a weekly meeting time - each Thursday for 12 weeks - beginning today, March 5. The group is 4 to 5 p.m. at Post 49, with a time to debrief, socialize after and connect to peers more informally with a meal provided free of charge for attendance.
He said they are certainly open to supporting the community as needed after the 12 weeks.
“I think it’s another great example of Bowen just reading the room and having their ear to the ground as to what’s needed,” Smith said. “We have conversations often about the prevalent mental illnesses and we talk about PTSD and all the things that go with these professions, and veterans, of course, too. And good on Bowen for stepping up and trying to do their part and having some sort of solution, if you will, or response to what they see is needed in our community. It’s another great example of them paying attention to what’s going on around them, but it’s also another testament to why this community is so great as well.”
Liebetrau said people can join the group at any point, they don’t need to attend all 12. “Just pop in when you can.” Each session will have a separate topic attached to it so a person can attend all of them or whatever works for their schedule.
Helps Just One
“If it helps one person, it’s a success,” Smith stated.
Mike Murphy, Bowen Health director of community engagement, said, “We’ve been doing this for a few months, we’ve been holding monthly sessions just to build up to this 12-week program. And the feedback that we’ve received from the veterans that are already coming, it’s been helpful. Specifically, they’ve looked at our therapist that’s been there and says, ‘You’ve helped me today.’ And I think that’s extremely important and valuable for us to hear, and that’s when we’re talking about helping that one, that’s the outcome that we’re really after. When they look at us and say, ‘You’ve helped me.’”
Groeller said Bowen’s doors are always open to veterans and first responders.
“Proud and happy to serve that very important population,” he said. “One thing we noticed is, we’re likely not serving all the people that we could within the confines of our facility. Whether we like it or not, or agree with it, there’s still some stigma out there with becoming a patient and giving your insurance information. So it took recognizing and some encouragement from Sheriff Smith and some of our local elected officials saying, ‘Hey, there’s more of a need out here that you’re not seeing.’ So it took more than Bowen to see that and I wanted to be able to point that out.”
Liebetrau said if anyone is interested in additional services beyond this group, Bowen’s services are confidential. They also offer virtual services.
