Fully Involved: A Guide For Being In A Relationship With A Firefighter

“In the fire world, “fully involved” refers to a building that is totally engulfed, flames pouring from the windows. In a relationship with a firefighter, you must be fully involved as well.”Falling in love with a firefighter is like falling for someone from another world, because the fire world is not the normal world. A firefighter’s significant other has stepped into a relationship that is exciting yet lonely and challenging. Mynda Ohs learned what it’s like the hard way: by starting without a clue. In Fully Involved, she shares her experiences of twenty-two years of marriage to a firefighter as well as her expertise as a practicing clinician who specializes in counseling both first responders and couples. From her unique point of view and through her own experiences and those of her family and others, Mynda details everything a firefighter’s significant other faces: the firefighter’s burnout, hypervigilance, compassion fatigue, and PTSD as well as the stress of long absences, the ever-present danger of a line of duty death, and the strain and loneliness of being married yet feeling single.Conceived to help significant others by assuring them that they’re not alone and helping them save their relationships through self-care and communication activities, Fully Involved is a mesmerizing book that will attract a wider audience. Everyone interested in the fire world will want to read it. Chapters that cover subjects from parenting to fire camp to talking about final wishes, while serious about the subject matter, are also entertaining, with titles like “What You Don’t See Is What You Get” and “Talk Isn’t Cheap Unless You Make It That Way.” A popular speaker with fire departments and a respected crisis therapist who has counseled first responders on the scene at tragedies including the Las Vegas Shooting and the Montecito Mudslides, Mynda has written a book offering both personal and professional insights and inspiration. Read more