Ernie Gallant, a volunteer firefighter from New Glasgow, Prince Edward Island, has been diagnosed with PTSD after two decades in the fire service. In the summer of 2020, he experienced a mental breakdown and sought help, realizing his extensive firefighting career had contributed to his condition. Now, Gallant is giving presentations titled "Left Turn" across P.E.I., aimed at helping firefighters cope with unrecognized trauma, particularly benefiting older members who may have struggled to address such issues in the past due to stigmas around mental health.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-11,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
After 20 years as a P.E.I. firefighter, something snapped.
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something → snap → firefighter
Now he's teaching others about PTSD
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he → teach → PTSD
Ernie Gallant says older firefighters can benefit most from speaking about trauma
In the summer of 2020, Ernie Gallant hit a wall.
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Gallant → say → wall
After 20 years as a volunteer firefighter, he says his body — and his mind — crashed.
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body → say → firefighter
"I didn’t know what was going on," he told Island Morning host Wayne Thibodeau.
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he → know → Thibodeau
"My legs came out from under me and I was crying."
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I → come → me
Gallant was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
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Gallant → diagnose → disorder
He said those two decades of fighting fires in New Glasgow, P.E.I., likely played a major part in the development of the condition.
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decades → say → condition
"Every time I come out of the driveway and looked left, I was triggered," he said, noting that he turned left out of his driveway when responding to a particularly traumatic fire call in 2003.
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he → come → 2003
Ernie Gallant was diagnosed with PTSD after spending 20 years as a volunteer firefighter in New Glasgow, P.E.I.
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Gallant → diagnose → Glasgow
He says he would travel 'anywhere' to speak about his experiences with the disorder and unrecognized trauma.
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he → say → disorder
PTSD often presents in people who have experienced or witnessed traumatic events.
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who → present → events
Symptoms can include vivid flashbacks alongside other mental health conditions like anxiety or depression, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association.
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Symptoms → include → Association
Now, Gallant is talking publicly about his experience with PTSD.
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Gallant → talk → PTSD
Last year, he started giving presentations that he's titled "Left Turn" in firehalls across P.E.I. to help other firefighters who may be struggling.
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who → give → firefighters
"Twenty-five years ago, there was nothing positive," he said.
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he → be → ?
"You went home.
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You → go → ?
Best case, you sat back at the hall and talked a little bit.…
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you → sit → hall
Worst cases, there were guys that, [in] other halls, alcohol became an issue."
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alcohol → be → halls
Gallant noted that older firefighters often stand to benefit the most from talking about their experiences.
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firefighters → note → experiences
After one of his presentations in western P.E.I., Gallant said a young firefighter approached him to ask if he would speak at the fire department in Alberton.
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he → say → Alberton
"He said, 'I need you to come because the older members need to hear this,'" Gallant said.
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Gallant → say → this
"'The younger members are getting the training now but the older members aren’t.'
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members → get → training
"
Firefighter safety is getting more costly.
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safety → get → ?
Some P.E.I. stations are going into debt to keep up
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stations → go → debt
Island students suiting up to fight wildfires this summer
Jayoda Tennekone, a registered social worker who runs a private practice in Charlottetown, said young people are generally more comfortable opening up about their mental health.
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people → suit → health
He estimates that men and adolescent boys make up 80 per cent of his current caseload.
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men → estimate → caseload
"As a generalization … younger people have that ability and the language to be able to speak about their experiences because it’s so much more normalized," Tennekone told Island Morning.
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Tennekone → have → Morning
He said the men he works with often feel a need to live up to traditional stereotypes of masculinity, wanting to appear stoic and unemotional.
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he → say → masculinity
"That was the expectation for so long — decades and decades," he said.
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he → say → decades
"To unpack and unlearn some of that and recognize that you can be this provider, but also know when it’s time to express a level of vulnerability … it’s a challenge to get there."
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it → unpack → vulnerability
To speak more openly, Tennekone said men need a safe, non-judgmental space where expressing their feelings is normalized.
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expressing → speak → feelings
That’s exactly what Gallant is trying to do through his presentations: lead by example.
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Gallant → ’ → example
"It’s tough.
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It → ’ → ?
I’m still getting better," he said.
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he → get → ?
Gallant said he would travel “anywhere” to speak about his experiences with PTSD and unrecognized trauma.
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he → say → PTSD
As for those who might be struggling now?
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who → struggle → those
"Advocate for yourself," he said.
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he → advocate → yourself
The Aporia
