The aftermath of a traumatic event can be hard to take.
But London hosted a first of its kind conference on Saturday at the Convention Centre, offering education and support to those who are dealing with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Some London police officers felt PTSD following the Fleming Drive riot near Fanshawe College on St Patrick's Day in 2012.
The outpouring of hate during that event appears to have triggered symptoms related to PTSD.
Staff Sgt. Tom Gaffney with the London Police Service's Critical Incident Stress Response Team says PTSD is a constant concern for emergency responders.
"As members of a peer support group, we're there to provide a debriefing environment for them to offer them support when issues arise from attending those type of calls.
Many things can trigger PTSD, including a death in the family, an accident or an injury. It's suspected that 1 in 10 people have suffered PTSD.
Dr. Charles Nelson is with the Operational Stress Injury Clinic at London's Parkwood Hospital.
He deals primarily with military and RCMP personnel and says significant strides have been made to identifying and treating cases of PTSD.
"The good news is that through the work we do with exposure based treatments is when they do try to get their life back together, they will get better at dealing with those triggers," says Dr. Nelson.
London Professional Firefighters Association President John Hassan says removing the stigma associated with PTSD is imperative.
"We've got to stop looking at things as disorders and start looking at them as injuries or conditions that can be identified through education and treat it," says Hassan.
