Officer Mental Health
You spend your shifts responding to people on the worst days of their lives. You’re not getting called to the good moments. You’re showing up for the chaos, danger, and loss. Seeing that day after day, while dealing with constant stress, threats, and trauma, can take a real toll on you.
Over time, this can show up as unhealthy coping habits, feeling burned out, not performing at your best, or sometimes more serious challenges like PTSD or depression. None of that means you’re bad at the job. It means you’ve been exposed to a lot and may need support to stay healthy—for the community you serve, the people you care about, and yourself.
The information here covers some common challenges police experience, but everyone’s experience is different—and that’s okay. Just because you may have some of the below symptoms does not mean you have a diagnosable mental health challenge.
Take a mental health screening to learn more about what you're experiencing and if it may be time to talk to a professional.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Because of the types of calls you respond to, 1 in 7 officers meet the criteria for a PTSD diagnosis. Not every officer with PTSD will have all of these symptoms, but at least one from each category has to be causing distress for at least a month in order to be diagnosed with PTSD by a professional.
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This is an infographic in shades of blue and white with navy lettering about the types of PTSD symptoms. Each section covers different symptom categories and provides examples for each. The first type of symptoms listed are “intrusive thoughts", which include flashbacks, nightmares, and distressing memories. The next section is changes in reactivity. This includes hypervigilance, sleep challenges, self-destructive behavior, and irritability. The third area is “avoidance of stimuli”, which includes avoiding people, places, activities, or situations that may cause distress because of the experienced event. The last section is “negative changes in thought/mood." This section gives examples that include negative views of self, the world, or others, challenges with the cause of the event, consistent negative mood, and lack of interest in activities
This is an infographic in shades of blue and white, with lettering in different shades of blue and white, featuring types of PTSD symptoms on the left-hand side and coping strategies for PTSD on the right-hand side. The left-side states 'symptoms of PTSD include' and lists the following: feeling on edge or easily startled, an increase in interpersonal problems or trouble in relationships, feeling disconnected from people, difficulty expressing or talking about feelings, an increase in drinking or drug use, including taking higher doses than prescribes of prescription medication, panic-like symptoms including heart beating faster than normal, sweating and an overall sense of unease or agitation, people close to you commenting on you seeming different or not being yourself and reacting in ways that are not characteristic of you. All of this text is white, with a light blue background. On the right, the background is white, with the title in blue that reads: "Here are some ways of coping with PTSD." There are five navy blue icons: deep breathing with a lung icon, faith with prayer hands, meditation with a meditating figure, exercise with a dumbbell, and self-care with a cup with steam rising. At the bottom of the infographic, there is a white background with shades of blue stating, "Most importantly, you are not alone."
Self-Injurious Behaviors and Suicide
Policing comes with real risks that go beyond the physical ones. Constant scrutiny, tense interactions with the public, tough calls, and juggling work and home life all add up. Because of this, about 13% of officers report having suicidal thoughts, which is higher than in the general population. You also face a 54% higher risk of dying by suicide compared to non–law enforcement.
This graphic points out some common warning signs of police suicide to be aware of for yourself, your partners, and the people you care about.
Please click here for an audio description of the above graphic.
Here is a visual description of the audio: This is an infographic in shades of blue and gray with red lettering about suicide warning signs for law enforcement. Each section, which will be explained, goes into different categories of warning signs and specific examples of each. On this infographic are specific images related to that section, so where the title is listed, there is an image of a police car. The first warning sign listed is “talking about it”, which states “ the officer says they want to end their life, or die” or they are seeking ways to complete suicide. This section has an image of two silhouettes with thought bubbles above their head to indicate them having a conversation. The next section is changes in behavior. This includes when the officer suddenly behaves abnormally, is sleeping too much or too little, is withdrawing from others, or is displaying signs of rage or emotionality. This section has the image of an illustrated police officer, visibly angry with flames around them to highlight their rage and negative feelings. The third area is “changes in outlook” and has the image of a police station. The changes in outlook section covers the following points: suddenly starts expressing ideas or thoughts that are extreme or different from their usual, seeking revenge, feeling hopeless or helpless, and believing their stressors will never improve. The last section is “life changes or stressors”. This section’s icon is an icon that has divorce written on the top with a signature and pen on the bottom. This section gives examples of the sudden negative life change officers may experience, such as Internal Affairs investigations, extramarital affairs, divorce, death and loss, and financial issues. The bottom of the graphic has two icons that signify red police lights, usually seen on the top of a police car. This section says: If you or someone you know is thinking of harming or killing yourself, call 911, 988 or go to your nearest emergency room.
Depression
Depression is common in policing. About 39% of officers report being affected by depression at some point in their career. Depression doesn’t always look like sadness or crying. For a lot of cops, it shows up in quieter ways: losing interest in things you used to enjoy, trouble sleeping, pulling away from family or friends, or feeling constantly on edge, short-tempered, or numb. You may notice changes in energy, motivation, or focus at work, even if they’re still “getting the job done.”
Experiencing depression doesn’t mean you’re bad at the job or can’t handle the work. It means something is weighing on you—and support can help you get back to feeling more like yourself. That’s not a weakness—it’s a reaction to repeated stress, trauma, and the demands of the job.
This is a light blue infographic with black and navy blue text and icons. There are four icons of silhouettes on the left-hand side. There are three black ones, and one is navy blue. On the right, there is text that says "1 in 4 first responders experience depression." The number one is in navy blue, while the remaining text is in black.
Moral Injury
Though Moral Injury (MI) is not currently a diagnosable condition, it is relevant to certain professions, such as the military and law enforcement. MI happens when the things you do, things you witness, or things you fail to do go against your own sense of right and wrong. That internal conflict can hit hard, leading to challenges that look a lot like PTSD.
This diagram breaks down the similarities and differences between Moral Injury and PTSD, so you can see how each may affect you.
This is an infographic on moral injury v. PTSD to highlight their differences and similarities. It is a Venn diagram and has a black background. The left circle is a royal blue with white letters for moral injury to show its differences from PTSD, and includes the following: questioning your morals and beliefs because of your actions/inactions, feelings of shame, regret or remorse, and guilt, feeling disconnected from your support system, and no DSM-V Diagnosis. The right side is for PTSD and is a light blue with white letters. It includes hypervigilance and feelings of being on high alert, occurs after an event where someone feels as though their life/sense of safety was in danger, can lead to effects on the nervous system, and is formally diagnosed by a professional. The center is an overlap of both circles, which includes gray and dark blue letters, and includes the similarities of moral injury and PTSD. This section includes feelings of anger, sleep challenges, isolating and not enjoying hobbies/spending time with loved ones, avoiding triggers, intrusive and negative thoughts about themselves/the event.
Stigma
Stigma is the negative belief that makes people hide what they’re going through or avoid getting help.
Even though a lot of officers experience mental health challenges, only about 17% actually get care. Fear of being judged or seen as “not fit for duty” can keep you from reaching out. Getting support doesn’t make you weak; it makes you stronger.
Here is a video from the wife of a law enforcement officer sharing her view of stigma's effect on officer mental health.
Substance Use
20–30 % of officers report patterns of problem alcohol or drug use as a result of chronic stress, trauma exposure, and irregular shift work. This is substantially higher than the estimated 10 % prevalence in the general population. Lifetime alcohol misuse or dependence has been found in nearly 8 % of officers, and more than one‑quarter show dangerous drinking behaviors.