Althea Olson and Mike Wasilewski

More Than A Cop

Althea Olson, LCSW, and Officer Mike Wasilewski, LCSW, have been married since 1994. Althea is a social worker in private practice at Fox Bend Counseling in Oswego, Illinois. Mike works full-time as a police officer for a large suburban Chicago agency and part-time as a social worker with Fox Bend Counseling. They write on a range of topics including officer wellness, relationships, mental health, morale and ethics. Their writing led to them developing More Than A Cop, and they have traveled the country as police trainers teaching “survival skills off the street.”

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Full list of Althea Olson and Mike Wasilewski results

How self-awareness can improve a police officer’s personal relationship
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Seeing the good in a relationship is extremely important to maintaining positive feelings toward one another, but awareness of problem areas is just as important
Battling job stress: How cops can strengthen their resilience
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One of the most important factors necessary for good mental health is resilience
9 ways for cops to fight mental health stigma
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We adapted the National Alliance on Mental Illness suggestions for fighting mental health stigma to the unique demands and challenges of being a police officer
Suffering in silence: Mental health and stigma in policing
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Cops are dying by their own hand and many suffer in silence for fear of the stigma they may face from their department
3 ways to prepare for psychological realities of violent encounters
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What few instructors teach is the psychological gap between the theory and practice of training and the jarring, disorienting reality of a violent encounter
Why memories matter for the well-being of police officers
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When negative emotions and memories become the norm they program us to expect the negative and distrust the positive
How LEOs can overcome negativity in 8 steps
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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is one therapeutic treatment modality developed to teach people how to identify and overcome negative thought processes
4 principles cops can use to overcome negativity and negative thoughts
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No one is immune to dark thoughts and impulses. Everyone is unique, however, in how frequently they allow these thoughts to intrude and what they do with them when they do
8 ways to repair a police marriage after an affair
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In a profession famous for testing even the strongest relationships due to high stress, many officers too easily slip into affairs
5 keys to keeping complacency from killing a police marriage
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Knowing that the number one killer of cops is complacency, let’s apply the core value of law enforcement — keeping survival skills at the forefront — to a law enforcement marriage
6 steps to achieving your LEO goals
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We’re a quarter of the way through the year, so how are your goals and resolutions for 2015 coming?
How to know if you are being bullied
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According to the Workplace Bullying Institute, here are indicators you are being bullied. The Institute has guidance to identify bullying both inside and outside of the workplace. Outside of Work •...
Bullies in the workplace: Sabotaging police culture
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Bullying is now recognized as “not just for kids” as the problem of adult bullying in the workplace is getting attention – the law enforcement workplace is not exempt
Hey officer, are you really worthy of trust?
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It is the innumerable small moments in life that define whether we are a person worthy of trust
7 things police leaders need to know about Millennials
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Almost every generation of young people has engendered suspicion, and even derision, among their elders, and the Millennials are certainly getting their share
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