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Friday, July 1, 2011

Dispatch Stress

**WARNING: THIS POST WILL NOT HAVE ANY PICTURES**

For the longest time, I feel that I just need to ramble... to just flow my words together, spill my guts, and rock the roll. Rock the roll? Where did that come from?

I see a lot from behind the desk in dispatch. Every call that is taken here is different. And, people react differently to each type of situation. One call that my co-worker might take may affect them emotionally, and it may not phase me. Likewise, there may be a call that I cannot but help get involved in, emotionally, spiritually, sometimes physically, and one of my co-workers will not understand.

Working in dispatch, you get to be that voice behind the phone... the mostly unseen face by the community. We are here to help them, without prejudice. Because its what we do. We don't ask for much... just be polite and understanding on the phone. But sometimes, you just see all the bad in the world... every little stupid, fickle thing that the general public calls for, and it gets to you. You can never just put your finger on one thing, because it is not that at all. It's the whole collection of things. From the beaten wife and kids, to the dog barking, to the "did you just really call to ask if you had to stop for someone in the crosswalk?" It gets to you. And we relieve a lot of that stress through laughter, but you can only laugh so much. To realize that every emergency call that comes in, there is a son or daughter, wife or parent, and sort of relation. These people are that call's life.

It seems that it may be a thankless job, and it sometimes is, but, the best part is when people recognize your job, and they take the time of day to show that they appreciate what you do, whether it be a police officer that stays a few extra minutes beyond their shift to talk, or a quick thank you at the end of a phone call. Whatever it be, it makes your day.

But still, with all that being said, stress is always upon us. And sometimes, you can't do anything right. When it comes to that, I always think of a quote from the show Criminal Minds:

Sometimes there are no words, no clever quotes to neatly sum up what's happened that day. Sometimes you do everything right, and still you feel like you failed.

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