“I have been an EMT for 29 years,  I started in the military. It can be stressful, but I have learned to train myself that when it is over, it is over. Shut it off and move on the next call. Don’t ever think you have seen everything with this job. You have to be very self-aware driving an ambulance. Instead of pulling to the right, people stop right in front of you or don’t pay attention that you are there. You never have the same day twice. Today’s crazy day will be different from tomorrow’s crazy day. Most of today’s calls have been falls. We have had seven falls in three hours today. It comes in spurts. Many are elderly. They trip over something or lose their balance. Every incident is different. The car wrecks and unexpected accidents are the hardest. I have two teenagers and every time I hear about a car wreck, I check where they are. My first thought is always if they are okay. It hasn’t happened to me, but I do know people who have come up on their own child. You aren’t going to get rich doing this job but it is rewarding to help people when they need it or do something fast acting and see them change and get better. Saving someone’s life never gets old.  I am the tail end of my career, patients are getting heavier and heavier and it is hard on my back. I am trying to pass on the things I have learned to the younger guys coming in. I was a medic in the military and served in the first Gulf War and saw a lot of stuff over there. I was on the highway of death. It was God awful and I was 23. The sights I could deal with, it was the smells that stayed with me. It’s a job and not everyone can do it. “