PTSD and Alcohol Use in First Responders
Why So Many Medics, Police Officers, Border Patrol Agents, and Firefighters Drink to Cope
If you serve as a first responder, you carry things that most people will never see. Long nights. Sudden loss. Scenes that do not fade when you close your eyes. You push through because the job demands it. You protect people who will never know your name. You run toward the danger when everyone else is running away.
With that weight comes something many in this field never talk about. The quiet use of alcohol to take the edge off. To fall asleep. To stop the flashbacks. To numb the noise.
As a Marine Corps veteran, a former police officer, and a trauma therapist, I have been on both sides of this. I have lived it and I now help people heal from it. This is not about blame. This is about understanding why self medicating is so common and why it does not work the way we think it does.
Why First Responders Turn to Alcohol
Constant Stress That Never Fully Resets
Your nervous system is built to protect you, but when you stay in that fight or flight state for years, it becomes the new normal. Alcohol feels like relief because it shuts down the alarm system for a moment.
Sleep That Never Comes Easy
Insomnia, nightmares, broken sleep, and the fear of closing your eyes are common with PTSD. Alcohol is an easy way to get to sleep, even if it is not real rest.
A Culture That Normalizes Drinking
Drinking Culture
Most agencies do not talk much about therapy, but they sure know how to organize a get together with drinks. Many of us learned early that the quickest way to bond with the ones who understand us is to drink with them.
Silence and Pride
You are trained to be the helper, the protector, the one who holds the line. Admitting that you are drowning on the inside can feel like a failure. Alcohol becomes the thing you do in private so nobody sees how much you hurt.
The Problem With Alcohol as a Coping Tool
Alcohol works in the moment, but it makes everything worse in the long run.
It increases anxiety.
It worsens sleep.
It intensifies depression.
It keeps the brain from processing trauma.
It quiets the emotions we need to heal.
The more you use it to cope, the more your brain relies on it. Over time, the trauma stays unprocessed, the symptoms get louder, and the pain gets deeper.
You are not weak for drinking. You are human. You are trying to survive without the tools you were never given.
PTSD Looks Different in First Responders
PTSD in this field does not always show up as shaking in a corner. It shows up as:
• Sudden anger
• Numbness
• A short fuse
• Avoiding people
• Staying busy so you never have to feel
• Drinking to take the edge off
• Feeling disconnected from family
• Feeling like you are never really off duty
• Anxiety that hits out of nowhere
These symptoms are not flaws. They are signals that your mind is carrying more than it can hold.
Healing Is Possible. You Do Not Have to Do It Alone.
Trauma can be healed. The brain can be rewired. Your nervous system can learn to calm down again. Your sleep can improve. Your reactions can settle. The weight you carry can become lighter.
At The Well Counseling and Consultation PLLC, I work with veterans, active duty service members, police officers, border patrol agents, first responders, and the families who love them. I use Brainspotting, CBT, ACT, and other trauma informed tools to help you process what has happened and take back your life.
You do not have to white knuckle it. You do not have to pretend you are fine. You do not have to rely on alcohol to get through the day.
A Simple First Step
If anything here hits home, reach out. You can call, text, or email me. You can also schedule a free thirty minute consultation to see if we are a good fit.
This is the work where you learn to Embrace the Suck, not by carrying it alone, but by learning how to walk through it with strength and purpose.
You do not have to keep surviving. You can start healing.
The Well Counseling and Consultation PLLC
Serving clients anywhere in Texas through virtual counseling
