By MnFIRE Assistance Program partner, Optum People in the fire service experience much higher rates of mental health challenges than the general population – particularly in the areas of sleep disorders, depression, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicidal ideation/action. The stigma associated with mental health conditions causes many firefighters to stay quiet about what...Read More

Most of us have probably felt the strain of our job or the difficulty of balancing the fire service with other areas of our lives. It’s easy to try to muscle through it knowing we have an important job helping others and keeping them safe. However, there comes a point where we need to let...Read More

International Firefighters’ Day is observed each year on May 4. Born out of a tragic loss of five firefighters in a wildfire in Victoria, Australia, this day was created to honor their lives, as well as firefighters around the world. This International Firefighters’ Day, we recognize and honor the sacrifices firefighters make across the globe,...Read More

The past year has been stressful for everyone, to say the least, and according to the American Psychological Association, pandemic-related stress comes with serious health consequences including changes to weight, sleep and alcohol use. First responders already face high exposure to traumatic stress incidents, so we caught up with Dr. Margaret Gavian, licensed psychologist and...Read More

Did you know that more than 93% of all Minnesota firefighters are non-career? Non-career firefighters are often busy serving their community at night – responding to a cardiac arrest, fatal fire or car wreck – only to have to work their “regular” job during the day while continuing to fulfill their roles as a parent,...Read More