From the moment I earned my uniform, I loved being a Primary Care Paramedic. I loved the identity and purpose it gave me, the privilege of helping people on their hardest days, and the ability to use my skills, training, and tools to make a meaningful difference. The job grounded me and shaped who I was. But like many in this profession, I carried the weight of countless calls, and one call in particular changed the entire course of my life. It pushed me into one of the darke

I want to begin by saying this isn’t easy to write. None of this is for attention. It’s for the one person who might read it and realize they aren’t alone. This is my real story, one that starts with chaos, falls into darkness, and rises again only because God stepped in when I couldn’t carry the weight anymore. In April of 2007, my life took a new direction. I had spent years being wild, angry, reckless, and causing plenty of trouble in the same town that raised me. But some