Something to
talk about
NJ State PBA clinicians and other
experts urge members to keep their
mental health in check by speaking up
■ BY AMBER RAMUNDO
You’re driving along your normal commute to work when the
neon check-engine light suddenly appears on the dashboard. What
do you do?
You’re supposed to read the symbol as a sign that something in
the car is not working properly, and you to take it to a mechanic for
repair. But the truth is, not everyone takes this precaution.
In fact, many might ignore the inces-
sant blinking of the warning icon each
time the car starts up. After a while, the
light is there for so long that you forge a
mental block, hoping that one of these
days the car will fix itself and the orange
light will turn off. Most likely, it doesn’t
go away. The problem just gets worse.
And what happens next? Failure to
attend to your vehicle results in a break-
down, sometimes causing an accident
that hurts the driver in the process.
Dr. Michael Bizzarro, Clinical Di-
rector of First Responder Treatment
Services at Princeton House Behavior-
al Health and a clinical services pro-
vider for the NJ State PBA, applies the
check-engine metaphor to how law
enforcement officers often look at their
mental health. And what happens when
individuals ignore the signs of trau-
ma, depression and anxiety that build
up over time on the job? Just like that
car that needs regular oil changes and
maintenance every 3,000 miles to keep
going, Bizzarro insists that officers have a need for mental tune-ups
to check their mental health and wellness throughout a career that
wears them down and leaves them refusing to ask for help.
“This culture disregards the initial warning signs and waits until
they break down,” Bizzarro explains about why, for the third year
in a row in 2018, law enforcement officers who died by suicide out-
numbered those who were killed in the line of duty.
According to Blue H.E.L.P., 159 officers in America took their
own lives in 2018. On Jan. 8, Mercer County Sheriff’s Officers Local
187 State Delegate Pat Papero mustered the courage to stand up
at the state meeting to talk about the loss of one of the PBA’s most
beloved members, Local 187 President
Pablo Santiago, who on Dec. 26 became
one of the eight officers in New Jersey to
take his own life in 2018.
“Pablo was involved in everything
and had a smile on his face wherever he
went,” shared Papero. “If that guy who
always had a happy face on the outside
was suffering and able to do something
like this, then there had to have been
someone else in that room who feels
the same way.”
Retired Union County Corrections
Officers Local 199 State Delegate Ken
Burkert has committed his livelihood
to assisting first responders in crisis as
the Law Enforcement Peer Liaison for
Princeton House Behavioral Health.
While working with numerous officers
in recovery, Burkert, who founded the
PBA’s Peer Assistance Response Team,
has learned that often, the officers who
are hurting the most are the ones their
brothers and sisters would least expect.
The problem is that officers don’t realize
that by masking the pain, they are putting themselves in danger.
“It’s the signs that are not obvious that are killing these officers,”
Burkert insists. “Pablo wore a mask of happiness when, under-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 49
www.njcopsmagazine.com
■ JANUARY 2019 47