The Space Between Calls
A series on mental health, culture, and humanity in EMS
What happens after the sirens stop, matters.
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Author’s Note
I wrote this series from inside the work…and from the silence that follows it.
I’ve spent years in and alongside EMS culture, watching good people carry things no one ever taught them how to hold. I’ve also lived the cost of that silence, personally and professionally, and know how heavy the space can feel after the noise fades.
The Space Between Calls was written for those quiet moments — the ones that don’t make it into reports or conversations. For anyone who has gone available again while still carrying the last call. For anyone who has wondered why the weight lingers, or why rest never seems to be enough.
This series is not about fixing EMS. It’s not about blame, or toughness. It’s about recognition. It’s about naming what lives in the quiet moments between calls; the parts we carry and rarely speak aloud. It’s about naming what’s real in a profession that asks for steadiness without always making space for humanity.
If you recognize yourself in these words, know this: you are not weak, and you are not alone. Being seen can be the beginning of something kinder.
~ Carrie Newsom, LSW, Paramedic
The Series
1. We Are Failing Our First Responders — And Calling It Strength
2. We Joke Because We Don’t Have Time to Grieve
3. Burnout Isn’t Weakness — It’s a Warning
4. You Can Love EMS and Still Need to Leave
6. Sleep Deprivation Is a Mental Health Issue
7. Why “Just Talk to Someone” Isn’t Enough
8. Leadership Matters More Than Resilience Training
9. When the Uniform Becomes Armor
If these words feel familiar, you belong here.
You’re welcome to stay in touch as this space continues to unfold.