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Special Report: You’ve Got a Friend
The job would be to direct allocation of profession- al counseling services as a way to address the need of officers to want to deal with somebody who knows what it’s like to walk in their shoes.
Additionally, the Lodge
would convert its second
floor to offices where of-
ficers can come and seek
counseling in a more dis-
creet setting. Nobody
would see you as walking
into a treatment facility. You
could be coming to 1412 W.
Washington St. to go to the
FOP gift shop, see a field
rep about filing a grievance
or inquire about any number of other services that the union provides. Catanzara asserts that it’s all about confidentiality.
To create easy access to resources, Mette is currently work- ing on making a specialized app called Lighthouse available to members. This will be loaded with resources the National FOP has vetted: a 24-hour hotline, personal wellness tips, mental health advice, connections to substance abuse and addiction
treatment, physical and financial fitness programs and even a link to find your own therapist.
The app can also be customized. The Lodge will load access to the De- partment’s chaplains and be able to send out push notifications with any type of mental health and wellness information. It’s part of putting as much information in officers’ hands as possible.
“I was messing around with the app the other day, and there’s a lot of cool suggestions about how to
find time to decompress,” Mette discloses. “Stuff to stop think- ing about the job for five or 10 minutes, which in and of itself can alleviate a lot of stress. A way to turn the switch off.”
Turning the switch off for 10 minutes might go a long way to- ward preventing turning off the switch permanently.
“It would be great if there are more places where members
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CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ APRIL 2021 35