Caring for the People Who Care for Everyone Else

By Kristen Dooher, RN, BSN & Owner of Westwood IV Therapy

As Mental Health Awareness Month comes to a close, I want to share something personal, not because my story is special, but because I know I am not the only one who has lived it. If you are a first responder, a nurse, a medic, a veteran, or anyone who carries other people's worst days for a living, this is for you.

At Westwood IV Therapy, we are incredibly honored to be chosen as the official IV provider for the Healing Heroes Foundation’s BFit Heroes Cup.

For me personally, this opportunity is far more than just a business milestone. It is a full circle moment.

Before Westwood IV Therapy existed, I spent more than a decade working as a nurse in the Emergency Department at Boston Medical Center. Like so many healthcare workers, first responders, military members, and frontline professionals, I saw trauma every single day. Over time, you learn how to compartmentalize. You tell yourself you are fine. You push the feelings down and keep moving because that is what the job demands.

Until one day, you can’t anymore.

For years I lived with anxiety, but during COVID everything finally tipped over the edge. The pressure, the constant trauma, the fear, the loss, the exhaustion, and the emotional weight of working in ER during that time became too much for me to carry.

I had what I can only describe as a nervous breakdown.

I experienced overwhelming rage, severe anxiety, emotional numbness, panic, and memory loss that became significant and honestly frightening. Eventually, I was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

That diagnosis changed my life.

For the first time, I had to stop pretending I was okay. I had to admit that years of trauma, grief, chaos, and constantly witnessing suffering had finally caught up with me.

Stepping away from the ER was devastating. Nursing was part of my identity. But taking time off gave me space to start healing. Through therapy, medication, support from people who loved me, and a lot of hard work, I slowly started to feel like myself again. Eventually, I was able to return to work, first in urgent care and later back in the ER itself.

But even after returning, I was still carrying the same stress, trauma, and emotional weight that had led me to a nervous breakdown in the first place.

That was when my friend, and now co-owner, Kelly Lloyd, floated the idea of starting a mobile IV therapy business that would bring infusions directly to people in their homes.

Honestly, I was immediately interested.

It felt different. It felt hopeful. It felt like maybe there was another way for me to continue helping people while also creating a healthier and more balanced life for myself.

So we took the leap.

With Kelly’s support, a lot of luck, relentless hard work, and plenty of perseverance, Westwood IV Therapy was born.

What started as an idea between friends has grown into something we are incredibly proud of. We have been able to help people feel better physically, support wellness in our community, and build meaningful relationships with our clients. More importantly, we built something rooted in compassion, connection, and care.

Now, being part of an event like the BFit Heroes Cup means more to me than I can fully explain.

This tournament is helping shine a light on mental health struggles among first responders, military personnel, and others who spend their lives taking care of everyone else while suffering silently themselves. It is helping break down the shame and stigma around asking for help.

And that matters deeply to me.

Because PTSD does not always look the way people think it does. Anxiety does not always look obvious. Trauma can hide behind professionalism, humor, overworking, irritability, exhaustion, or isolation. Many people are struggling quietly while still showing up every day and doing their jobs.

I know because I was one of them.

Today, I am grateful to be in a place where I can give back to the same community I once stood beside in the ER. At Westwood IV Therapy, we believe healing matters. Mental health matters. Asking for help matters.

And no one should have to carry trauma alone.

We are proud to support the Healing Heroes Foundation and everyone working to create more honest conversations around mental health, PTSD, and healing.

If sharing my story helps even one person feel less alone, then it is worth telling.

Learn more about the BFit Heroes Cup and the Healing Heroes Foundation here: healingheroesfoundation.us/bfitheroescup