Essay On First Responders

Even though it has been fifteen years since the al-Qaeda terrorist attack in the United States, the images of the victims and first responders are still clear. While thousands of people were running away from the World Trade Center and the Pentagon hundreds of first responders were running towards them. Every day first responders act selflessly in order to take care of those in need within their communities. They are the first ones to arrive on a scene to see the death and destruction that has been caused. Once on the scene they are required to put their emotions and sometimes physical injuries aside in order to do their job of taking care of the emotional and physical needs of the victims in order to save lives. On the day of the 9/11
The terrorist attack on 9/11 expanded the role of first responders to also include volunteers, clergy, therapist, construction workers, and citizens in the community. “Studies have demonstrated that, after participating in disaster responses, first responders experience elevated rates of depression, stress disorders, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for months and sometimes years” (Rutkow, 2011). These mental health conditions may also include anger, fear, anxiety, irritability, insomnia, isolation from others, avoidance, intrusions (nightmares and flashbacks) and Psychic number (Reagan, 2015). Many of the 9/11 first responders may have been experiencing psychological issues even though they appeared to be fine at the time or in the months following the attacks. They may have been experiencing some of the symptoms mentioned above but they may have been in denial or simply hiding them from others. Sometimes it is difficult to determine if first responders have a mental health disorders because everyone deals with trauma and stress