Police Sergeant Karen Jarman serves with Bedfordshire Police. 5 years ago, she was viciously assaulted by a known drug user who took exception to
A week before Karen was savagely assaulted, she had passed her Sergeants exam after a lot of hard work and dedication.
Karen said:
“The first photo
“That incident changed my life, I spiralled into a mental health black hole I thought I’d never come back from, made me fear front line duty and I contemplated resigning.
“But I had the best therapist who diagnosed and dealt with my PTSD who put me back together and from somewhere I managed to find the strength to fight back.
“The second photo was
“My student and I had by chance come across a flat that had caught fire so we put the door in and although we were overcome by smoke ourselves managed to pull everyone (and a dog!) out to safety.
“So these two pics sum up so much for me in terms of my career.
“I rediscovered my passion not just for the job but the people doing the job and achieved so much more than I could have imagined when I was in that dark place.
“Look after yourselves, look after each other, you never know what someone has been through.
“Remember too that when you feel broken there is a way forward and what doesn’t kill you can only make you stronger”.
The male who attacked Karen was sentenced to 7 months imprisonment for attacking Karen and for knocking her unconscious.
But he was immediately released from custody owing to the time he had already served.
Karen was not awarded any compensation by the Courts for what she had to endure, despite her injuries and despite having post-traumatic stress as a direct result of the beating she sustained.
Karen asked us to share her story in order to highlight the many and frequent dangers faced by police officers and to also encourage people to talk about their mental health in the workplace.
Karen also wanted to show that there really is light at the end of the tunnel and that the #ThinBlueLine really is worth fighting for.
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