How was your shift?
Get it off your chest.
General duties, detectives, highway patrol, specialist units, PSOs and civilian staff. Put down what you're carrying before you go home.
Which best describes you?
This changes a few questions and which support lines come first. You can change it any time.
Everything you enter stays on this phone. Nothing is sent to your command, your employer or anyone else. Unladen Blue is a prototype. It is not a medical or emergency service and is not connected to any police force or government agency. · Give feedback
Take a moment.
Find a quiet spot if you can, even in the car. Breathe. You're allowed a few minutes.
Breathe with this
What you might be feeling
- Shaky, sick, or a racing heart
- Numb, or oddly calm
- Tearful, angry, or both
- Going over what you could have done differently
These are normal reactions. They usually settle over hours or days.
If what you saw won't leave you
Strong images and feelings after a bad job are normal. Use peer support or your welfare officer, and talk to someone today. Fortem Australia (1300 33 95 94) supports police outside the chain of command.
Ground yourself
Look around. Name them, out loud or in your head.
Call someone now
Add a peer supporter, a colleague or your welfare officer in so they're here when you need them.
Not sure who to tell?
If you don't feel safe telling your sergeant or commander, there are other people you can go to. Or write down what happened, just for you, while it's fresh.
What helps after
Handover to yourself
A few minutes after you knock off. Notice what you're carrying, then leave what you can at the station.
Please talk to someone now
You said you've had thoughts of harming yourself or not wanting to be here. Please call one of these now. If you're in immediate danger, call 000.
Light load
This phone isn't letting the page save. Your result shows here but won't be kept.
About the assault or threat
Make sure it is recorded and get checked. Workers compensation and union support are there for you.
Your safety
You said you didn't feel fully safe. That matters. Debrief with your team and raise it with your sergeant.
Getting home safely
You said you've got very little energy left. If you're driving, a 15 to 20 minute nap before you leave can help, or get a lift. Text someone when you're home.
What might help
People you can call
This isn't a medical assessment. It's a way to notice how you're going over time.
How it's been going
Last 14 days
Handovers
This phone isn't letting the page save, so handovers won't be kept.
Privacy & your data
Add a PIN, download what you've entered, or delete everything from this phone.
Policing takes something out of you
What to watch for, and what helps. Tap a heading to open it.
After a traumatic job
- Shock, replaying it, trouble sleeping and feeling numb are normal reactions.
- Use peer support and your welfare officer. That is what they are for.
- If it's still strong after a couple of weeks, see your GP, your EAP or a psychologist.
- The Black Dog Institute's National Emergency Worker Support Service offers free sessions with a clinical psychologist for current, retired and volunteer emergency workers.
Jobs involving children
- Child deaths, abuse and exploitation cases are among the hardest work in policing.
- Ask for rotation if you are always on these jobs.
- It's normal to feel it more when you have children of your own.
Being assaulted or threatened
- Get checked, and make sure it is recorded.
- It's not part of the job, even when it happens often.
- Workers compensation and union support are there for you. The Police Association of NSW is on 02 9265 6777.
Critical incidents, use of force and investigations
- Being involved in a critical incident or investigation is stressful, even when you did nothing wrong.
- Get advice from your union before formal interviews.
- Lean on peer support through the process.
When it doesn't feel safe to say you're struggling
- Asking for help isn't weakness. It keeps you working longer.
- Fortem Australia (1300 33 95 94) supports police and their families, outside the chain of command.
- Talk to someone outside work if that feels safer.
Shift work and fatigue
- Rotating shifts disrupt sleep and relationships.
- If you're too tired to drive home, don't.
- Protect your days off.
Your family
- Your family carries some of this too.
- Fortem Australia also supports police families.
- You don't have to share details to share how you're feeling.
Bullying, harassment or conflict
You don't have to put up with it, and you don't have to sort it out alone.
- Write down what happened, with dates, while it's fresh.
- If your manager is involved, talk to someone outside your reporting line.
- The Fair Work Commission can make orders to stop bullying at work.
- For sexual harassment, 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732) is there 24/7.
Signs you're carrying too much
- Dreading the next shift
- Images from jobs coming back
- Feeling numb, or angry at home
- Drinking more to switch off
- Pulling back from family and friends
Repeated exposure to trauma affects everyone. These are normal responses, not a weakness.
Getting home safely
After a long or late shift, tiredness can affect your driving as much as alcohol.
- If you're struggling to keep your eyes open, don't drive. A 15 to 20 minute nap before you leave helps.
- After a hard shift, text someone when you get home.
When to get more help
If your load has been heavy for two weeks or more, you dread going in, or it's affecting sleep or home life, talk to your GP or EAP. A GP can set up a Mental Health Treatment Plan for Medicare-subsidised sessions with a psychologist. The Black Dog Institute's National Emergency Worker Support Service offers free sessions with a clinical psychologist for current, retired and volunteer emergency workers.
People to call
Save the ones that apply to you. They stay on this phone and show up on the Help now screen.
Support lines
Support outside the chain of command
Sometimes the person you'd normally tell is part of the problem, or it just doesn't feel safe. Here are other ways to get support. You choose what to do, and when.
From your organisation
Your police force can add its own peer support, welfare and EAP numbers here.
Someone outside your reporting line
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Free, confidential counselling. Your manager isn't told that you called.
- Peer support officers and welfare officers. Trained police who understand.
- Fortem Australia. Support for police and their families, 1300 33 95 94.
- Police Association of NSW. Your union, 02 9265 6777.
- National Emergency Worker Support Service. Free sessions with a clinical psychologist.
- Your GP. Outside work altogether, and can refer you on.
Text or chat instead of calling
For when talking out loud isn't possible, or feels like too much.
For particular situations
Seeking help early is the best way to stay well and stay working.
Spiritual and religious support
Some people find strength in prayer, ritual or their faith or cultural community after a hard shift. Others find it in nature, music, exercise or quiet. Whatever gives you meaning counts.
If your workplace has a chaplain or wellbeing officer, they support people of any faith or none. Their role is to listen, not to persuade.
Words to start with
The first sentence is often the hardest. You could say:
"I'm not ready to make a complaint. I just need to talk this through."
"Can this stay between us? Is there anything you'd have to pass on?"
"A job from last week is still with me."
"I'm not sleeping and I don't want it on my file."
What happens if I tell someone?
- Counsellors, peer supporters and helplines keep what you say private. The main exception is if someone is at serious risk of harm. If you're unsure, ask at the start.
- A union can give you confidential advice before you decide anything.
- Your private record in this app stays on your phone unless you choose to share it.
Not ready to tell anyone?
That's OK. You can write down what happened, just for yourself, and decide later.
Numbers and services are for New South Wales and Australia-wide. Check with your organisation for its own services.
Write down what happened
It stays on this phone. It isn't a report, and nothing is sent anywhere. If you later decide to raise something, notes written at the time are easier to rely on than memory.
My entries
Entries can't be edited, so each one shows when it was written. To add something, write a new entry.
No entries yet.
If you decide to share it, you can download it or send it to yourself.
Your phone, your data
PIN lock
Ask for a PIN when the app opens, and after it has been in the background for a minute.
PIN is on.
The PIN stops someone else opening the app on your phone. It doesn't encrypt what's stored, so keep your phone locked too. If you forget it, you can delete everything and start again.
Hide the screen
Tap the eye button at the top of any screen to cover the app straight away, for example at the station or on the way home. Tap to come back, or enter your PIN if you've set one.
Download my data
Download everything you've entered (handovers, private record and contacts) as a text file. You could keep a copy, or show it to your GP or counsellor.
Delete everything
Deletes your handovers, private record, role, contacts and PIN from this phone.
Delete everything from this phone? This can't be undone.
About Unladen Blue
Unladen™ Blue is a prototype made by Co-Synthesist Pty Ltd, Newcastle NSW. Unladen™ is a trade mark of Co-Synthesist Pty Ltd. It isn't a medical or emergency service, and it isn't connected to any police force or government agency. The questions haven't been clinically validated yet.
What's stored: your role, handovers, private record, saved contacts and settings, only in this phone's browser. Nothing is sent to anyone. There are no accounts, analytics or trackers.
Feedback: the feedback form is the only part of Unladen Blue that sends anything, and only when you press Send. It doesn't include anything else from the app.
Keep in mind: if you clear your browser data or remove the app, what you've entered goes too. Download a copy first if you want to keep it.
Version 0.1 prototype · September 2026