The importance of building your own resilience
As communications professionals we are adept at telling stories which help the public understand some of the most complex and traumatic events in society. We all share a sense of privilege that we can help be that victim’s voice, or bring an offender to justice.
Often, the details we’re exposed to – whether they are at the scene of the incident, in Gold groups, reading through logs, or through discussions about a case within our own teams – can take an emotional toll.
The ongoing negative rhetoric around policing can also feel like personal blows when we try so hard to tell the positive stories, while being open about the bad ones; it can be difficult to maintain a positive outlook when every day is spent dealing with some of the darkest aspects of society.
This is why consideration for our own personal resilience and wellbeing is something we should all be taking seriously. The type of incident which might affect us will be different for us all, as will the emotional response we have to it.
This guide aims to give you the tools to understand how to spot when you might need to seek help, and how to help yourselves with some simple exercises and advice from the experts.
An introduction to Mindfit cop
We know policing is hugely demanding. As corporate communications staff, we can become extensions of the investigative and operational teams, frequently experiencing things and being exposed to traumas that most people will never experience.
Mindfulness training offers us tools to help deal with these pressures and with the reality of policing today.
Mindfit cop is an eight week online mindfulness course that you can take to improve your resilience and help you cope. Each week, you will work through the lesson, which will take around 30 minutes to complete.
You will then complete the home practice task, which will take between 10 and 20 minutes. Each lesson builds upon the previous one and, if you persevere, you will learn how you can make cognitive changes with lasting effects.
You'll need to log into your Oscar Kilo account to access the course, if you haven't got an account you can create one here
Keeping the peace webinars
These interactive and engaging webinars have been developed to support police officers and staff with their mental health and emotional wellbeing.
The webinars aim to help you to recognise the signs of emotional struggle in yourself and others and will give you the knowledge on how to support yourself and your colleagues.
Alexis Powell–Howard is a professional speaker for mental health, she has developed a reputation for being innovative, progressive, and collaborative in her thinking. She has developed two webinars, supported by podcasts that will help you improve your personal resilience:
Duty of self care
Looks at the role of serving the public, the impact of the job on your mental health, how to look after yourself and how to avoid burn- out.
The masks we wear
Looks at how we present ourselves, how we respond to others, what we show and what we keep hidden and will discuss the reasons why.
The morning checklist
This checklist has been provided by Norfolk and Suffolk Police and had a box to fill in local information
