Paramedic Alexis - "Two Floors Up"

“It draws you in. There’s no other way to explain it – if you’re not an EMS or a first responder, fire, police whatever – it all just draws you in.” – Paramedic Alexis 

What if you didn’t choose your job? What if it chose you? Alexis wasn’t privy to a lot about what her father dealt with during his 26-year career as a police officer, and what she did know only solidified her belief: she did not want to be a first responder. She was well aware of the job’s inherent dangers and the mental and emotional toll it could take, and she opted to fulfill her desire to help others by becoming a teacher. But when she realized she needed a career change, she found herself – and her purpose – in an EMT class, and after her first shift in an ambulance the rest, she says, is history. 

Join former firefighter/paramedic and host Phil Klein as he sits down with Paramedic Alexis who discusses how calls affect first responders – but not in the necessarily in the ways they might expect. After being called to the scene of what is initially reported as an infant drowning, Alexis braces for what she assumes will be a swift and difficult emotional response. Instead, she finds the call’s impact to be latent and unpredictable, and she’s left to grapple with some extremely tough lessons very early in her career.

Thank you for joining us for this first episode of season four of Stories From the Road! Please take a moment to give the podcast a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or whichever platform you use to listen. Visit www.storiesfromtheroadpodcast.com for exclusive content, merchandise, and to learn more about being a guest on the show.