From “Us vs. Them” to “We”: Mindfulness as a Bridge in Public Safety
- CMPS Faculty
- 17 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Discover how mindfulness helps public safety professionals move beyond the “us vs. them” mindset, fostering empathy, balance, and human connection.
Based on a Mindfulness-Based Work Readiness talk given by Fleet Maull
In public safety work, we’re trained to see the world in terms of threat and safety, danger and control. This is necessary—until it isn’t.
Over time, that vigilance can become more than a job skill; it can turn into a worldview. The “us vs. them” mindset—officer versus offender, staff versus inmate, protector versus public—can harden into habit.
And when it does, it damages more than community trust; it erodes our own well-being.
But here’s the good news: mindfulness gives us a way out.
Understanding the “Us vs. Them” Reflex
When we’re under stress, the body and brain default to primitive survival systems. The sympathetic branch of our autonomic nervous system up-regulates our physiology—pupils dilate, the heartbeat accelerates, and our body floods with stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. This “fight or flight” activation kept our ancestors alive in the wild, but it’s not meant to run all day, every day.
In modern policing and corrections, though, many of us live in that state.
We don’t just respond to danger—we anticipate it, prepare for it, and sometimes even see it where it isn’t. Over time, that physiological pattern becomes a psychological one: the sense that it’s us against the world.
Mindfulness gives us a way to interrupt that loop—to regulate our own physiology, step back from reactivity, and re-engage from a more grounded, present, and human place.
A Simple Shift: From Reaction to Response
Through mindfulness practice—whether it’s formal meditation, mindful movement, or a simple breathing technique like straw breathing—we learn to down-regulate the body’s stress response.
Breathing in through the nose and out through pursed lips, as if through a straw, gently activates the parasympathetic branch of the nervous system—the one responsible for rest, recovery, and balance.
This small physiological shift changes everything. It creates a pause, and in that pause, we get to choose. We can respond from awareness instead of reaction.
That pause is where “us vs. them” begins to dissolve.
What Officers Are Saying
Mindfulness training isn’t about becoming soft—it’s about becoming stable, steady, and clear. Officers and correctional professionals who have completed CMPS programs consistently report changes not only in how they handle stress but also in how they see others:
“The practices help with the inmates. I am more able to forgive them and see them as humans. I’m being more open to them.”— Correctional Officer
“I had an incident last week, a woman who came in irate, off her meds, but just wanted to be heard. The other officers wanted to take her to jail but I tried to listen to see what she really needed. We were able to divert a crisis.”— Law Enforcement Officer
“I did a call back on a suicidal person a month ago. We all have bad times. I was able to recognize, ok, step back and talk to this person and feel their pain and try to get them the help they need. Not be so spiteful and quick to judge people.” — Police Sergeant
“I’m noticing the difference now with inmates—if I stop and calm myself, it helps them calm down, helping them come back to the present, instead of continuously yelling about their past.” — Correctional Staff Member
Each of these stories illustrates the same point: when we regulate ourselves, the environment changes. When we bring presence into the room, others can meet us there.
From the Drama Triangle to the Human Circle
Psychologist Stephen Karpman described a concept known as The Drama Triangle, which consists of three habitual roles we often fall into—Victim, Persecutor, and Rescuer.1
You can see how easily this applies to public safety work. We can get caught in being the “Rescuer” (fixing), the “Persecutor” (controlling), or even the “Victim” (burned out, cynical, powerless).
Mindfulness helps us step out of the triangle entirely.
It lets us stay in what Fleet Maull calls “the adult frame”—grounded in the present moment, aware of our own conditioning, and capable of responding creatively rather than habitually.
When we do that, we’re not stuck in “us vs. them” anymore.
We’re simply humans working with other humans, each of us doing our best under pressure.
Why This Matters Now
Across the nation, law enforcement and correctional agencies are recognizing that culture change begins from the inside out. Wellness, emotional intelligence, and mindful leadership aren’t add-ons—they’re mission-critical.
Because the truth is, mindfulness doesn’t just make us calmer; it makes us better. Better at decision-making, de-escalation, communication, and compassion. Better at going home at the end of a shift with our integrity intact.
As one CMPS participant put it:
“I am so grateful and humbled for the opportunity to help my coworkers learn these tools, and to promote a positive cultural shift in the DOC family.”
That’s what this work is really about—building a culture where compassion and accountability can coexist, where officers and staff are trained not only to protect others but also to protect their own minds and hearts.
Practice: Try This Today
Before your next shift—or right now—take 60 seconds.
Sit up straight, feet on the ground.
Breathe in through your nose.
Breathe out slowly through pursed lips, as if through a straw.
Count 1-2-3-4 on the in-breath, 1-2-3-4-5-6-7 on the out-breath.
Let your shoulders drop. Feel your heartbeat slow. That’s your nervous system rebalancing. That’s your physiology shifting from fight to focus. Carry that steadiness with you. Because when you’re grounded, everything changes—the call, the encounter, the tone of the entire room.
In Closing
Mindfulness isn’t a luxury in public safety—it’s a leadership skill.
It’s how we move from division to connection, from reaction to reflection, from “us vs. them” to “we.”
This isn’t just good for those we serve—it’s essential for us.
Because when we practice mindfulness, we remember what brought us to this work in the first place: a desire to serve, to protect, and to make a difference.
1.Karpman, S. (1968). Fairy tales and script drama analysis. Transactional Analysis Bulletin, 7(26), 39–43.
Interested in learning more about Mindfulness-Based Work Readiness or other trainings offered by CMPS?