Members of RAA’s staff recently graduated from the nationally recognized Struggle Well training program developed by the Boulder Crest Foundation, a nonprofit established in 2013 to help military veterans and their families struggling with depression and other problems. The Struggle Well initiative was created specifically to help first responders.

More first responders die by suicide than in the line of duty. It’s also estimated that 30-40% of our nation’s first responders are struggling with significant mental health challenges.

Struggle Well is a comprehensive approach that focuses on the transformation of the active serving first responder culture, rather than the implementation of another wellness program. The program is guided by two main objectives: normalizing the struggles that are a part of every first responder’s life and democratizing their ability to struggle well. The training helps participants transform struggle into strength and growth so they can be of better service to themselves, their family, community and country.

Boulder Crest began piloting the Struggle Well training program in 2021 in partnership with the Miami-Dade County Chiefs of Police Association, and it quickly expanded to 37 departments and a multiyear undertaking to train more than 6,000 law enforcement officers and professionals.

According to the organization, 99 percent of those who participated were very satisfied with the training, reporting a 45 percent improvement in personal growth, based on self-assessments through the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) developed by Dr. Richard G. Tedeschi, a psychologist, researcher, and professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, who cofounded the science of posttraumatic growth in 1995.

The results of the PTGI test indicated significant growth in each domain of posttraumatic growth:

  • Deeper Relationships: 56 percent improvement
  • New Possibilities: 48 percent improvement
  • Spiritual-Existential Change: 46 percent improvement
  • Personal Strength: 36 percent improvement
  • Appreciation for Life: 34 percent improvement

The Struggle Well training builds on the steps RAA has already taken to improve the mental health of its employees. In addition, RAA created a Peer Support Program to help its providers cope with day to day stress both at work and at home. RAA also has a Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) team in place. CISM sessions are used to help staff members after a traumatic event such as a Mass Casualty Incident (MCI), a line of duty death, or pediatric death. CISM staff members help their co-workers work through their feelings and cope with those feelings after such an incident.

The existing programs, as well as the Struggle Well training, are all aimed at improving the mental health, resilience and culture within the agency.