In this conversation, Doug Monda shares his personal journey as a first responder and the founding of Survive First, a peer support organization for first responders. The discussion covers the challenges faced by first responders, the importance of peer support, and the impact of mental health struggles on individuals in this profession. Doug's own experiences with mental health and recovery provide valuable insights into the need for support and understanding within the first responder community. The conversation delves into the struggle of police officers to seek and receive help for mental health issues, the challenges of returning to work after seeking treatment, and the realization of the widespread struggle among first responders. It also covers the creation of Survive First, the expansion of support, and the impact of advocacy and legal guidance for first responders. The theme of finding gratitude and the importance of advocacy and legal guidance are recurring throughout the conversation.

The conversation covers the importance of collaboration between union reps and legal representatives, the challenges of miscommunication, the cultural change in law enforcement regarding mental health and PTSD, and the need for educational initiatives and legislative reform to address legal challenges and protect first responders. The partnership and collaboration between union reps and legal representatives are crucial for the best outcomes.

Takeaways

• Union reps and attorneys must work together for the best outcomes.
• Communication and collaboration between union reps and legal representatives are crucial.
• The cultural change in law enforcement regarding mental health and PTSD is trending in the right direction.

In this episode of Shielded, Paolo Longo and Geoff Bichler sit down with a truly unique guest — Robert Asencio, a retired law enforcement officer with more than 25 years of service, a combat veteran, a former Florida House of Representatives member, a former client of Bichler & Longo, and now a passionate advocate for first responders and veterans through his nonprofit Healing Corp.

Robert brings a perspective that almost no one else can offer — having lived the first responder experience from the street level, the legislative level, and the personal level as someone who fought his own Heart Bill claim and won.

In This Episode We Cover:

• Robert's background — 34 years of combined military, law enforcement, and legislative service and what drives his advocacy work today
• His new film Out of the Fire Into the Light — documenting the post-traumatic growth of combat veterans from the Second Battle of Ramadi, and what it means for first responders dealing with similar trauma
• Healing Corp — Robert's nonprofit focused on healing through storytelling for veterans and first responders
• Why employers consistently fail first responders when mental health issues surface on the job — and whether it's intentional or simply a failure of awareness
• The dangerous gap between agencies that talk about supporting their people and what actually happens when a claim is filed
• How compounded trauma builds over a 25-30 year career — and why the average first responder experiences hundreds of traumatic events compared to four or five for a civilian
• The mind-body connection — how untreated PTSD and stress directly contribute to cardiac conditions, hypertension, and AFib (and why Geoff and Paolo see this every day in their cases)
• The culture of silence — why first responders still hesitate to raise their hand, and how that silence destroys careers, families, and lives
• What early intervention actually looks like — and why the clients who come in early almost always finish their careers while the ones who wait often don't
• A behind-the-curtain look at Tallahassee — what really happens when first responder legislation comes up for a vote and why there's more lip service than action
• The 2018 PTSD law — how it passed, why it falls short, and what needs to change
• Robert's role in saving Florida's public sector pension system — protecting $183 billion for public employees statewide
• Why bipartisan collaboration is possible in Tallahassee when the right pressure is applied and the right stories are told
• The suicide crisis — why we are losing more first responders to suicide than to on-the-job injuries and why that is an institutional failing that demands action
• Robert's personal story — his own Heart Bill claim, his ejection fraction dropping to 35%, and what getting the right legal representation meant for his health and his life