SIDNEY — The Sidney Police Department and Wilson Health will host “Stop Letting Stress Make a Mess Out of You: A Seminar for Law Enforcement Officers” with Dr. Kathy Platoni on Dec. 5 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and Dec. 7 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the police department’s training room at 234 W. Court St.
The seminar is free for law enforcement officers, and all local law enforcement officials are invited to either session.
The seminar will cover the following topics:
• The physiology of stress and learning to turn down the tone drops in your brain;
• The unique stressors that law enforcement officers are exposed to in the course of their duties;
• How to recognize the signs and symptoms of acute and chronic stress, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD);
• When helping hurts;
• Tools to build resiliency;
• Where to find help and support for themselves or fellow officers.
According to the event brochure, Platoni is a nationally renowned expert in the treatment of PTSD and has been featured in over a dozen media outlets. She travels the country to share her experiences on the psychological impact and moral injuries of war as well as alternative approaches to the treatment of PTSD.
Platoni was involved in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom and was the chief psychologist for the U.S. Army Reserve for six years. As a survivor of the November 2009 Fort Hood Massacre, she also lectures widely on surviving mass shootings and the bystander effect. Other accomplishments include being the clinical director of the Southwest Ohio CISM Team; the director of support services for Ohio FOP Lodge #117; and an integral member of Dayton SWAT. She currently provides services to 40 police departments and seven fire departments, and she is in the process of writing her fourth book.
For more information on Platoni, visit www.drplatoni.com. To register for the seminar, contact Sidney Police Chief Mark McDonough at [email protected].
