At IACP 2024, I spoke about a subject that has defined much of my career: officer wellness. It’s a topic that often gets overshadowed by crime stats, policy debates, and operational tactics, but in reality, it’s one of the most critical aspects of policing.

The Night Everything Changed October 1, 2017

Stepping Into Chaos

When I arrived on scene, the radio chatter was pure chaos—reports of gunfire, injured civilians, and officers trying to locate the shooter. We had no idea how many shooters there were, where the shots were coming from, or what we were walking into. I forced myself to push aside the uncertainty and focus. This was what we trained for, but nothing could truly prepare us for the scale of what was happening.

The Emotional Weight of That Night

In the hours that followed, there was no time to process. Reports of additional shooters kept pouring in. Misinformation flooded our radios and forced us to clear casinos, parking garages, and hotels across the strip. My adrenaline was on overdrive, but beneath it all, I felt numb. The sheer scale of the tragedy was too much to grasp in the moment.

Eventually, the sun rose over Las Vegas. After twelve hours of securing properties, responding to calls, and working through the aftermath, I went home. But home didn’t feel the same. Sleep didn’t come. My mind replayed every moment, every face, every decision. The weight of it all settled in, and I realized that this wasn’t something I could just push through.

How That Night Changed My Perspective on Wellness

Before October 1, I thought I understood resilience. I had been through difficult situations before, but nothing compared to this. The impact of that night didn’t end when my shift was over. It lived in the nightmares, in the sleepless nights, in the moments of silence that felt too loud. I saw the same weight in my fellow officers, many of whom tried to bury it under long hours and avoidance.

That was when I truly realized that wellness in law enforcement couldn’t just be about physical fitness or checking a box for mental health awareness. It had to be about resilience—giving officers the tools to process trauma, to acknowledge their struggles, and to seek help without fear. It wasn’t enough to just survive the job; we needed to ensure officers had the support to actually live beyond it.

The stigma around mental health in policing makes it even harder. We talk about trauma and the horrors we see on the job, but we often forget that officers still have everyday stress—bills to pay, families to take care of, personal struggles outside the uniform. The weight of the job doesn’t erase those things, it adds to them. If we only focus on the big moments of trauma, we miss the full picture of what officers go through every single day.

The Beginning of a Mission

After the events of October 1, 2017, I found myself grappling with the long-term effects of trauma, both personally and within my department. Officers were suffering, and many were doing so in silence. My role in the response to that tragedy made it clear that our agency needed a more structured and proactive approach to wellness. That was when the sheriff called me. He wanted to create a wellness bureau—and he wanted me to lead it.

For so many officers, our struggles remain invisible. We suffer in silence, burying stress under long hours, tough calls, and the expectation to just keep going. I took on the role, not because I had all the answers, but because I knew firsthand how critical it was to build something better for our officers.

Initially, I had serious concerns. What did I truly know about wellness beyond my own personal experiences? How could I ensure that the program wasn’t just another bureaucratic initiative that would fail to make a real impact? I worried about the skepticism from my fellow officers—law enforcement is a culture built on toughness and resilience, and I knew that introducing a wellness program would be met with resistance.

Additionally, I was stepping into uncharted territory. There was no blueprint, no established model to follow. I was essentially starting from scratch, figuring out how to create a program that officers would actually trust and use. I questioned whether the administration would back me when tough decisions needed to be made, whether officers would feel safe enough to participate, and if we could change a deeply ingrained culture of silence around mental health.

Despite these uncertainties, I knew one thing for certain: ignoring wellness wasn’t an option. I had seen too many officers suffer in silence, using unhealthy coping mechanisms like drinking to get through the stress and trauma of the job. I had lived it myself. If there was a way to change that, I had to try.

Building a Program with Focus

Stepping into the role of building a wellness program, I quickly realized just how overwhelming it could be. From the moment we started, my calendar was filled with meetings—people pitching different approaches, from therapy dogs to goat yoga. With so many options and voices, I had to take a step back and ask: What do our officers really need? What will actually make a difference in their day-to-day lives and long-term well-being?

The first step was breaking down silos. Our department had resources, but they were scattered: peer support in one building, clinicians somewhere else, fitness programs disconnected from mental health. We brought everything under one roof and focused on three key elements:

I’ve often discussed the distinction between wellness and resilience. While wellness is a broad and sometimes vague term, resilience is more actionable. Resilience, as I define it, is “the ability to experience trauma and still perform both mentally and physically, in a job or in life in general.” By focusing on resilience, I aimed to equip officers with the tools they needed to process stress, maintain their mental health, and continue performing at a high level despite the challenges they faced.

1. Accessibility to Clinicians – When an officer reaches out for help, they need it now, not in two weeks. We hired our own in-house clinicians with open office hours, so officers could walk in anytime.
2. Physical Fitness as Mental Fitness – Research shows that exercise can be as effective as antidepressants. We worked to incorporate fitness as a key component of mental health.
3. Cultural Shift Toward Resilience – Officers don’t need to be told what wellness should mean to them. We conducted department-wide surveys, listening to what officers wanted. The goal was to create a culture where asking for help was seen as a strength, not a weakness.

What I Wish I Had Done Differently

Looking back, there are things I wish I had done differently, particularly in leveraging technology and data to make the wellness program more effective.

The Long Road to Healing

Trauma doesn’t disappear when an incident is over. It lingers, sometimes for years, shaping how officers process stress and interact with the world around them. Acknowledging trauma is one of the hardest steps, but it’s also one of the most important.

For many officers, seeking help feels like an admission of weakness, but the reality is quite the opposite. It takes immense strength to confront the mental and emotional toll of this job. We need to normalize therapy, peer support, and proactive wellness checks so officers don’t reach their breaking point before getting the support they need.

Continued wellness support is key—not just after a critical incident, but throughout an officer’s career. Regular check-ins, resilience training, and peer mentorship can make all the difference in ensuring officers are not just surviving their careers, but thriving in them.

Takeaways for Law Enforcement

1. Wellness Must Be Structured – Agencies need clear, accessible, and ongoing wellness programs that include professional mental health support, physical fitness initiatives, and peer support systems.
2. Leadership Sets the Tone – If agency leadership prioritizes wellness, officers are more likely to engage with the available resources. Command staff must openly support and participate in wellness programs.
3. Address the Stigma – Officers should feel safe seeking help without fear of professional repercussions. Normalizing conversations about mental health can help break down the barriers that keep officers from reaching out.
4. Not All Wellness Programs Are Created Equal – Generic wellness initiatives often fail to address the unique challenges officers face. Agencies should prioritize interventions tailored specifically for law enforcement, ensuring that mental health resources, training, and peer support programs align with the realities of the job.

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About the Author

Josh Bitsko is a retired law enforcement officer with over two decades of experience in policing, training, and wellness program development. Over his 24-year career with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, he served in various roles, including as a canine handler, child abuse detective, internal affairs investigator, and captain of the Las Vegas Strip. His frontline experience responding to critical incidents, including the October 1, 2017, mass shooting, shaped his passion for officer wellness and resilience.

Recognizing the urgent need for better mental health support in law enforcement, Josh spearheaded the creation of LVMPD’s Wellness Bureau, developing programs that addressed the unique challenges officers face. Under his leadership, the bureau expanded access to culturally competent clinicians, peer support initiatives, and resilience-based training. Now serving as the Vice President of Wellness Programs at Benchmark, Josh works with law enforcement agencies nationwide to implement data-driven wellness strategies. His mission remains the same: to ensure that no officer suffers in silence and that departments prioritize the well-being of those who serve their communities every day.