Ep. 98 : Enduring and Serving with Resilience, w/ Detective Tessa Melville
05/20/24 • 39 min
A critical theme in discussion of first responder wellness is resilience. When I look around at folks I work with in my department, it’s hard to find a better example of someone who embodies a resilient spirit than my teammate, Tessa Melville.
Tessa endured a host of critical incidents in the first few years of her policing career, both on and off duty. She was there when we lost Diego, helped care for one of our critically wounded officers, and on a different shift, walked away from an arguably near-fatal collision herself.
Tessa is a proud mother of a ten year old, and worked six years as a patrol officer, which included her role as an FTO, before promoting to the detective unit where she now works Special Assault cases. Prior to LE, Tessa spent five years in the Navy as a Greenside Hospital Corpsman where she received specialized training in traumatic field care.
We talk about her police career and dynamics with finding success as a female in the male-dominated field. Tessa opens up about going through many traumatic events, to include being the victim of sexual assault herself. She proudly praises therapy, EMDR, and spirituality as means to address her struggles with depression and anxiety and continue forward as an example of service to others with GRIT.
Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!
To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:
Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com !
Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more! Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.
Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.
Need help with entry-level OR promotional testing? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop
Email me at [email protected] !
-------------------------------------
Want a discount on the best value high-quality supplements? I've legitimately used Nutricost products easily for a decade. Whey isolate, plant proteins, collagen, vitamins, etc...??
Promo Code: BLUEGRIT - 10% off
Affiliate link: https://nutricost.com/discount/BLUEGRIT
-----------——————————-
*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies.
music credit: Drive by AShamaluevMusic
A critical theme in discussion of first responder wellness is resilience. When I look around at folks I work with in my department, it’s hard to find a better example of someone who embodies a resilient spirit than my teammate, Tessa Melville.
Tessa endured a host of critical incidents in the first few years of her policing career, both on and off duty. She was there when we lost Diego, helped care for one of our critically wounded officers, and on a different shift, walked away from an arguably near-fatal collision herself.
Tessa is a proud mother of a ten year old, and worked six years as a patrol officer, which included her role as an FTO, before promoting to the detective unit where she now works Special Assault cases. Prior to LE, Tessa spent five years in the Navy as a Greenside Hospital Corpsman where she received specialized training in traumatic field care.
We talk about her police career and dynamics with finding success as a female in the male-dominated field. Tessa opens up about going through many traumatic events, to include being the victim of sexual assault herself. She proudly praises therapy, EMDR, and spirituality as means to address her struggles with depression and anxiety and continue forward as an example of service to others with GRIT.
Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!
To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:
Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com !
Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more! Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.
Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.
Need help with entry-level OR promotional testing? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop
Email me at [email protected] !
-------------------------------------
Want a discount on the best value high-quality supplements? I've legitimately used Nutricost products easily for a decade. Whey isolate, plant proteins, collagen, vitamins, etc...??
Promo Code: BLUEGRIT - 10% off
Affiliate link: https://nutricost.com/discount/BLUEGRIT
-----------——————————-
*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies.
music credit: Drive by AShamaluevMusic
Previous Episode
Ep. 97: How to Adjust to First Responder Family Life, w/ Hailey Palos
I’m pleased to bring you more conversations about family dynamics as they relate to first responder life. Marriage is hard. Parenting is hard. Balance is hard. These are all common adages and topics OUTSIDE of first responder life.
We dive into this with Hailey, a therapist and advocate for first responders. As a relatively new first responder spouse herself, she shares what transition was like for her, her husband as he was a new recruit, and balancing their brand new family.
We cover what brought her into her profession, talking about bridging communication and trust with our own spouses, and how just like how first responders have things we gotta work through- mental health professionals are no different! (Smash the stigmas!)
From Hailey:
I am a first responder family and mom to an adorable toddler and angel baby with lived experience in the unique aspects of first responders, first responder family dynamics, postpartum struggles, loss, parenting, trauma (including birth trauma) and professional stressors.
I always knew my goal was to become a therapist because my own trauma, and ultimately healing, led me to therapy. Finding someone who held a great balance of their own personality while also being a neutral and insightful third party was a challenge. So this is my goal today; to hold that balance and de-stigmatize the idea of how a therapist “should” be.
@palospractice
Palospractice.com
Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!
To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:
Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com !
Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more! Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.
Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.
Need help with entry-level OR promotional testing? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop
Email me at [email protected] !
-------------------------------------
Want a discount on the best value high-quality supplements? I've legitimately used Nutricost products easily for a decade. Whey isolate, plant proteins, collagen, vitamins, etc...??
Promo Code: BLUEGRIT - 10% off
Affiliate link: https://nutricost.com/discount/BLUEGRIT
-----------——————————-
*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies.
music credit: Drive by AShamaluevMusic
Next Episode
Ep. 99: Why Internal Affairs Matter, w/ ret. Sgt. Marlon Marrache (IA Cop)
Internal Affairs.. IAs.. there are many unsavory nicknames for such roles and units..
Many of us know WHY they are important, but it can be hard to separate the caution, emotions, and stress associated with the title. Marlon Marrache worked for years in I.A., and helps us discuss not only why a strong I.A. process is critical for police accountability, but also in fair, objective process to exonerate false claims and support officer rights.
We dive into his career start and journey in law enforcement to his retirement- what keeps him well and active in his training and consulting.
—
Sergeant Marlon Marrache recently retired from the Los Angeles Police Department after 24 years of service. He now is focused full time on helping agencies and individual officers understand the internal affair process.
In 2023, Marlon launched a podcast called Internal Affairs: A Police Podcast. Marlon interviews officers who have been on all sides of an I.A., from investigators to the subject officers themselves. This podcast is the only place you can get a behind the scenes look into what really happened in some well known cases.
You can find Marlon at:
Savagetraininggroup.com
@marlon_marrache
@internal_affairs_podcast
Questions, topic ideas and feedback? Send a line!
To stay connected with the latest and exclusive content:
Subscribe to the FREE newsletter at on bluegritwellness.com !
Don’t forget to follow and subscribe to Blue Grit Radio on Apple, Spotify, YouTube and more! Sharing the show and episodes to your friends, peers, circles and social platforms is one of the greatest compliments I can receive- which truly helps the show grow.
Please help support a healthier first responder community by giving us a 5 star rating (Spotify and Apple) and a review (on Apple) to help others find the show.
Need help with entry-level OR promotional testing? Stop spinning your wheels and prep the right mindset and awareness of all the critical hiring steps with my comprehensive hiring guide:
bluegritwellness.com/shop
Email me at [email protected] !
-------------------------------------
Want a discount on the best value high-quality supplements? I've legitimately used Nutricost products easily for a decade. Whey isolate, plant proteins, collagen, vitamins, etc...??
Promo Code: BLUEGRIT - 10% off
Affiliate link: https://nutricost.com/discount/BLUEGRIT
-----------——————————-
*the opinions expressed in all episodes of this podcast and related materials do not reflect on any departments agencies.
music credit: Drive by AShamaluevMusic
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