The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office has a new way for deputies to deal with stress from the job. The Post Traumatic Stress or PTS app is helping deputies and their families deal with stress and it's available to the public as well.
"It's a hidden secret that no one ever really talks about," said Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco when speaking about the daily stress that law enforcement officers deal with.
"There’s broken families, alcoholics, and other issues that have gone on because their issues were never dealt with," said Sheriff Nocco.
That’s why the Pasco Sheriff’s Office used state money to develop an app called "Pasco County Sheriff PTS" for dealing with post traumatic stress.
"In my 12 years of law enforcement I’ve seen things that people shouldn’t see out there," said Pasco Sheriff’s Deputy Matt Rosenbloom.
Deputies like Matt Rosenbloom and his wife Lena now have access to help when they need it.
"There are certain cases that you cannot separate yourself from. I’ve had a couple of instances where it takes me a couple of days to get past dealing wit the death of a child," said Deputy Rosenbloom.
The app has many mental health tools, self assessments, and resources for family members.
"If you're a family member or spouse and your family is in crisis, you need only a couple of taps to get you help," said Lena Rosenbloom, wife of the deputy.
The app does not record or track any of your information and is currently only available for androids on Google Play, but they are working on an Apple version.
Sheriff Nocco says it’s not just for law enforcement. He encourages anyone who needs it to use it.
"When everybody feels like they’re swimming out to sea and there’s no one to help them. This is like another life preserver that we’re throwing out to help them get help; to make them feel better and realize they’re not alone," said Sheriff Nocco.
