Suicide Awareness Month: Let the Light in

September 1, 2026

September is Suicide Awareness Month, and we believe in starting the hard conversations. Mental health is a highly stigmatized topic, especially in first responder careers. This stigma makes it easy to keep your mental health problems in the dark, and even harder to bring them to the light.

This month, we urge you to take away their power; bring them into the light. 

The statistics speak for themselves. Mental health problems within first responders are highly prevalent, and it is our mission to bring those numbers down. 

Statistics: (sources listed below)

• 30% of first responders suffer from mental health issues, and those are just the ones that reported it.
• 48 first responders died by suicide in 2026 alone in the U.S., and that’s only a 60% estimated reporting. 
• 45% of firefighters diagnosed with PTSD reported probable alcohol abuse and dependence, and that's only reported from the participants in the study. 
• 89% of first responders experience sleep disorders, increasing the risk of mental health issues. That’s only out of the 100,000 first responders included in the study. 

You are not alone. There are resources to help you every step of the way, no matter where you are on your mental health journey.

SC FAST is an incredible resource, providing awareness-level training to South Carolina first responders. They assist in recognizing daily stressors, both in first responders' personal lives and during their emergency responses, as well as responding after potentially traumatic events.

No matter where you are, there are additional resources to assist you in your mental health journey.

Resources:

• Center for Behavioral Excellence: www.iaff.org/center-of-excellence/
• Shatterproof: https://fherehab.com/about-us/
• Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance: www.ffbha.org/
• 24/7 confidential crisis line for first responders & families: 206-459-3020
• SC FAST: scfast.org - 1.844.972.3278

Together, we can prevent tragedies before they happen.

Sources: 

• "Out of the Darkness: First Responder Mental Health" — Angela Outhouse, RN, EMT, FASNY Magazine.
• Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance (FBHA) — FF, EMS & Disp Suicide Deaths by Year & Type. FBHA began collecting suicide information for Dispatchers on May 1, 2019
• Center for Fire, Rescue & EMS Health Research / Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health (Jitnarin et al., 2022) https://www.science2station.org/fire-service-ptsd-stress
• Rebuilding First Responders — The Role of Sleep (and Sleep Debt) in First Responder Well-Being