b'BREAKINGDOWN BARRIERSJohn Gallup AddressesBehavioral Health Issues Head-OnB Y J E N N W O O L S O NJ ohn Gallups 30-plus-year fire service career has beenGallup strongly believes that addressing behavioral health fairly typical. He got involved with the union as a local officer, he was promoted to engine company officer and he learned early not to be bothered by the job.When I started in the fire service, it was theissues goes behind mental well-being. Rather, its essential old-school mentality that fire fighters arent supposed toto getting to whole-person wellness. For example, he says, have emotions, Gallup says. I learned early on that ImNobody goes through cancer without a behavioral health just not supposed to have any kind of response outwardly.component, he says. If you dont take care of the behavioral Unfortunately, you still have a response on the inside. health side, everything that we try to do on the cancer side will To his friends, family and fellow fire fighters, Gallup seemedbe less than effective.to be stuffing down those emotions just fine. But inside, a stormIts difficult, though, he acknowledges, to address problems was brewing. About seven or eight years ago, he says, he wasfire fighters arent willing to admit because of the stigma using alcohol as a coping mechanism, to the point that he wasattached to them. Gallup says that education can play a big role drinking from morning to night. It was a fairly dark time in myin breaking down those walls. We need to be able to talk about life, he admits. I had pretty much decided my career and mysuicide and addiction and PTSD with science-based facts about life were basically over, and I was just going to continue in aexactly what it is, how it takes place and what the components spiral until it came to an end. I didnt have any hope of any relief.are. The only way to eliminate those social stigmas and false I just thought, somehow, I had outlived my time. beliefs is by bringing in experts to talk about it.Despite his efforts to hide his struggles, a person in hisBeyond education and awareness, Gallup says its essential department who was part of the peer support team sensedfor departments to create an environment of comfort for something was wrong and engaged Gallup in conversation.vulnerability. Thats because he believes the only way to get Although it took a while, he was eventually persuaded to seekthrough behavioral health issues is through complete honesty treatment and get sober. In the process, he also uncoveredand openness. I think being vulnerable is the scariest thing some issues with social anxiety and post-traumatic stressin life, and certainly, the job of a fire fighter is not one of disorder (PTSD) that he wasnt even aware of. being vulnerable. But it doesnt matter the amount of book Through his experience, he realized there were likely manyknowledge or the number of times you go through rehab or other fire fighters in the same position he was in, battling privatemeet with a trauma counselor, its just not going to work until demons while putting on a brave face on the job. He wanted toyoure vulnerable.help them the same way he had been helped. When you findMaking it OK to not be OK, Gallup says, relies on fire chiefs something that seems to work for you, you want to be able to shareand union presidents being willing to stand up and talk about that if you can, he says. That drove me into changing my uniontheir shortcomings, their failures and their challenges in a very focus from the traditional labor work into behavioral health. honest, open way. When youre facing a problem and you Now Gallup is his departments health and safety officerdont know what to do, you have to be willing to admit that; and and a member of the peer support team at Puget Sounduntil leaders are willing to do that, its going to be very hard for Regional Fire Authority. In that capacity, he works with peopleanybody else to follow.one-on-one who are struggling with a behavioral healthAll of these efforts are a beginning, Gallup says. But theres issue, while also providing support at a department, statemore work to do. Theres no finish line in behavioral health, and regional level as a member of the IAFF Behavioral Healthhe says. Its not an illness that you treat and cure, and then Committee for the 7th District, which includes Montana,move on with your life. Its a forever process and a day-by-day-Idaho, Alaska and Washington. by-day process.33'