The dark side of being a Police officer

In a world where we are deeply fascinated with true crime, digging into the lives of perpetrators and victims and vicariously living through these horrific stories, there’s a side to it we always tend to forget.

And that is the police officers who see it all – these heroes are in the thick of every terrible, haunting case – from homicides, 10-car pile-ups to terrorist attacks.

But the emotional toll it can take on our cops is very, very rarely spoken about.

Police officers are regarded as strong and invincible protectors who can’t get hurt. But they can and they do.

Seeing death, destruction, tragedy and turmoil on a daily basis is not normal.

Sadly, not many members of the police force feel comfortable or even safe speaking about their emotions or mental health. The mantra is to bottle it up, forget about it and tomorrow is a new day.

Our guest on this episode is former Victoria police officer Cameron Hardiman – and he knows very well just how devastating ignoring your mental health on the force can be.

If you or someone you know needs support, help is available from Lifeline on 13 11 14.

Your host is April Glover

Your audio editor is Melanie De Gioia

The Executive Producer is Elissa Ratliff

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