I Love a Cop What Police Families Need to Know

Police families are brave, resilient, and proud--and they face remarkable challenges, sometimes on a daily basis. Now thoroughly updated for today's turbulent times, this is the resource that cops and their loved ones have relied on for decades. Trusted expert Ellen Kirschman gives you practical ways to manage the stress of the job and create a healthy, supportive home environment. The third edition features the latest information, new stories from police families, two new chapters, and fully updated resources. Dr. Kirschman acknowledges the tough realities of life on the force and offers frank, realistic suggestions for handling everyday relationship dilemmas as well as serious issues like trauma, domestic violence, and alcohol abuse. Whether you read this book cover to cover or reach for it when problems arise, you will find no-nonsense guidance to help your family thrive. Mental health professionals, see also Counseling Cops: What Clinicians Need to Know, by Ellen Kirschman, Mark Kamena, and Joel Fay.

Introduction 1. Living Through Troubled Times I. Hi, Honey. Im Home. 2. Married to the Job: Myths, Realities, and Relationships 3. The Way It Is: The Givens of Police Work 4. The Police Officers Paradox 5. Growing Old in a Young Persons Profession: How Officers Change with Time 6. Organizational Stress: Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places II. Remarkable Events Trauma 7. Critical Incidents, Stress, and Trauma 8. From Victim to Survivor: Working Through Trauma 9. From Battlefront to Homefront: Families and Trauma 10. Kids and Trauma Emotional Extremes 11. Domestic Abuse 12. Alcoholism, Suicide, and Addiction Getting Help 13. Getting the Help You Need When You Need It III. Special Families, Special Issues 14. Swimming Upstream: Special Challenges Facing Women, Minority, and LGBTQ Cops 15. Cop Couples IV. Summing Up 16. Success Stories Epilogue Resources

Ellen Kirschman, PhD, is a police and public safety psychologist, volunteer clinician at the First Responder Support Network, and sought-after speaker and workshop facilitator. Dr. Kirschman is a recipient of the Award for Outstanding Contributions to Police and Public Safety Psychology from the Police and Public Safety section of Division 18 (Psychologists in Public Service) of the American Psychological Association and the Distinguished Contribution to Psychology award from the California Psychological Association. She is coauthor of a book for mental health professionals, Counseling Cops, and author of the self-help guides I Love a Cop, Third Edition, and I Love a Fire Fighter, as well as the mystery novels Burying Ben, The Right Wrong Thing, and The Fifth Reflection. She lives in Redwood City, California. Her website is www.ellenkirschman.com. She also blogs with Psychology Today.