From Pinnacle: Be Where Your Feet Are: Strategies for Resilience
A deeply moving and powerful video montage of artwork by Daniel Sundahl kicked off the presentation “Be Where Your Feet Are: Building Your Own Resiliency” Thursday morning July 16, 2026 at the Sheraton Resort in San Diego.
Fire Chief Scott Lail, EMT-P, FP-C, CFE, AAS, of Cleburne Fire Rescue outside of Fort Worth, TX, discussed the science of cumulative mental trauma and explored the limitations of “reactive coping” during his presentation.
“I was a suspicious nonbeliever,” Lail said of the mental strain of the job and the role of post-incident counseling until a fertilizer plant explosion took the lives of 13 responders in West, Texas in 2013. A CISM team traveled from Cleburne to assist and met with hundreds of civilians and responders.
“What we were doing was actually working,” said Lail, who went on to become an ICISF peer-to-peer counselor. Dr. Brenda Tillman founded Cleburne’s Readiness Group, a team now comprised of 67 vetted counselors of different backgrounds.
Lail began his EMS career in 1992 and spent 19 years as a flight paramedic with CareFlite.
Lail outlined warning signs to look for among EMS personnel:
- Isolation (both at work and home)
- Apathy and lack of interest in previously enjoyed pursuits
- Lack of decision-making ability on non-job related matters
- Interpersonal conflicts
- Calling out of work
- Substance use
“These are the toughest conversations we will have,” Lail said of approaching a partner, employee or supervisor that exhibits one or more of these signs. But if you don’t initiate the conversation, you may never have the chance to.
We are good at pulling our brothers and sisters out of the river when they are drowning, said Lail. But what if there’s a better way? What if we teach them to swim before falling in?
When the nervous system is in full sympathetic mode as a result of cumulative emotional trauma, a person needs to return to the parasympathetic mode ASAP, said Lail. Outlining standards from FBI National Academy’s Master Resiliency Trainer Course, Lail offered these strategies to center yourself.
- Practice yoga
- Listen to music
- Meditate
- Eat a healthy diet
- Exercise (anything will help)
- Take a vacation. (A single day off is not sufficient)
- Practice “square breathing”
It's also critical to find your “why.” Why are you in EMS? What about the job is cathartic for your soul? What is going to make you want to come back tomorrow?
Something drew you to this field. Reconnect with what that is, concluded Lail. Finally, find a person with whom you can vent, confide in, and vocalize your feelings.
Presented by Fitch & Associates, the 21st Pinnacle EMS conference is taking place July 13-17 at the Sheraton Resort San Diego.
