When the helpers ‘feel helpless’: First responders get a boost in mental health support
by Amanda Watford, Stateline
May 5, 2026
Ty Wooten didn’t realize the weight of answering his first 911 call — until more than a decade later.
A woman had dialed 911 to report that her husband had shot himself in front of her and their 7-year-old son, on the family’s living room couch. It was Wooten’s first call as a dispatcher.
“I wasn’t prepared for that, and I didn’t quite realize how difficult that call was for me for several years,” said Wooten, who has worked in the 911 industry for morStateline·Research
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