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“It was an everyday, conscious effort...”

“It was an everyday, conscious effort...”

For the October episode of Blue Line, The Podcast, we take you north to the Greater Sudbury Police Service (GSPS) for a genuine, fireside-like chat with the service's wellness co-ordinator officer, Const. James Jefferson.

Jefferson is a 12-year police service veteran who specializes in mental health, peer-to-peer support, member outreach, physical fitness and nutrition. After working assignments in uniform patrol and the drug enforcement unit, working undercover, and being involved in a die by police suicide scenario, Jefferson endured the fallout of PTSD.

"I had to recover from this because living like this couldn't be an option," he says. "I couldn't sustain this lifestyle. It was just a matter of time before I did something that was dangerous or hurtful or that put me in harm's way. It was a conscious choice to be better than this disorder, to not be defined by it but to defy it. It all began there."

He tells us how he molded trauma into purpose and how he's now educating fellow first responders to overcome the challenges that come with wearing the badge.

Listen to the SoundCloud link on our website for the full conversation or wherever you get your podcasts under Annex Business Media: Podcasts.

You can also stream the show at annexbusinessmedia.com/podcasts or on the playlist HERE.

Did you miss our last podcast episode with Dilnaz Garda, the president of Toronto Beyond the Blue? Hear more from that conversation about the Heroes In Life Memorial, police families and more HERE.

This episode is brought to you by Wilfrid Laurier University. Offering 100% online degree options including a Bachelor of Arts in Policing, Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Policing, Master of Public Safety, and 5 Graduate Diplomas in the areas of Emergency Management, National Security, Countering Crime, Border Strategies, and GIS and Data Analytics. Transfer credits apply for Basic Constable Training towards the BA in Policing. For more information visit www.laurierpublicsafety.ca.

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