BOOK DESCRIPTION
This book brings home to law enforcement
officers and their families an appreciation for what each other are going through and how to foster "mutual support"
. Law enforcement developed from simple, uncomplicated functions involving little stress into complex and stressful endeavors
requiring highly trained personnel. Authors, James T. Reese, PhD and Cherie Castellano CSW, LPC, have spearheaded the essential
psychological services that have become common place in law enforcement organizations today.
More importantly, this book is an attempt to assist officers and their families in restoring
order in their personal lives.
This book offers suggestions for solutions. During
discussions with law enforcement officers and their families, the authors have learned that without a support system,
cops fail. Thus, the theme of this book emerges: our families are our ultimate backup. Without them, we lose, and
America loses.
Who Should Read This Book
It should be read by officers and their spouses alike. If the shoe fits, wear it. Don t beat yourself up, have a
pity party, blame the job, or live in the past. If you are divorced or separated, and believe the job may have been the culprit,
realize that it could have never been more than a partial factor. Ensure that it was not caused solely by your behavior and/or
attitude. Would a new job have saved your marriage? Or would a new attitude have served you better, regardless of your job?
If we find other things, such as our jobs, to blame our failures on, none of our failures will ever be our fault. We will
continue to find ourselves in new relationships and will not feel obliged to change. If you always do what you ve always done,
you ll always be what you ve always been. Our remedies to repair family issues should begin in our homes with an honest evaluation
of how our behavior affects those we love.
It seems logical to ask, "What makes this book unique from any
other book on police families?" The authors both have extensive (possibly unequaled) experience and training in
this field. However, they come from very different backgrounds, and, therefore, have different perspectives. Both are authors
and give keynote presentations throughout the world on topics of law enforcement stress, trauma, and coping. One is a law
enforcement officer and the other a law enforcement spouse. What they found as two unrelated practitioners in the areas of
police wellness was a need to portray the law enforcement officer s family plight in proper perspective,
and expose others to the stress and pressures on the officer, the officer s spouse, and their children.
It takes very special people to make up a law enforcement family. As officers, we must help families understand who
we are and why we think the way we do. Only then can they support us, help us, and, hopefully, change us.
Law Enforcement Families: The Ultimate Backup will shed light on the issues and provide some solutions.
Law enforcement is a wonderful and rewarding profession, employing some of the brightest and most sensitive people in the
world. The authors challenge us as officers examine the job, the changes it creates in officers, and its impact upon families.
Only then can we truly "serve and protect," not only the public, but the ones we love, to the best of our
abilities.
