Author Description

Annmarie Spiciarich is a life long first responder. She worked as a full-time paramedic for seven years, while volunteering as a firefighter. She then went on to work as a police sergeant, retiring after 23 years. During that time, she also trained the dispatchers in her department, sometimes subbing as a dispatcher. She is now a mental health counselor for a suicide hotline and a mobile mental health crisis team. Along the way, she became licensed as a registered nurse and has a Master’s in Forensic Psychology and Terrorism. She understands the unique stressors inherent in the world of emergency services and continues to see the toll it takes on workers. She spent years studying the effects of stress and how to deal with it. This book was developed to help first responders not only survive The Job, but to thrive while in it and beyond into retirement. It is packed with information and practical ideas to counter the stress most first responders feel daily. Annmarie sometimes takes her own advice and enjoys hiking, training with a search and rescue team, traveling internationally to over 30 countries and riding horses. Like most emergency workers, she has many stories to tell. Most are hilarious…but those are for the next book.