Understanding PTSD and the Path to Post-Traumatic Growth

Firefighter Nation Podcast · May 12, 2026 · 1h 5m

On this episode of We Can't Believe They Gave Us a Show, hosts Jim Burneka and Nick Magoteaux welcome Chris Perry, son of a former police officer. Perry, who ultimately followed in his father's footsteps, describes how his childhood was shaped by the constant, heavy awareness of the dangers his father faced. He recounts the 1979 murder of one of his father's colleagues, and how it shattered his six-year-old sense of security, leading to a lifelong pattern of hypervigilance and trauma. And he shares the harrowing details of an attack he endured years later. For decades, Perry lived in a…