Resilience in Uniform: Vance Row on Sobriety, Healing, and the Power Yoga

The pressures of public safety work—whether in firefighting, policing, or EMS—take a toll that too often goes unseen. Behind the uniform, countless first responders battle burnout, operational stress injury, substance use, and the silent weight of trauma.

What if there was a proven way to reconnect body and mind, to regain calm, and to begin healing? In this episode of Beneath the Helmet, I sit down with Vance Row of Yoga Rescue, a former police officer who turned to yoga in the darkest chapter of his life—and found resilience, sobriety, and a renewed sense of purpose.

Vance’s story is one of transformation. After years of serving in law enforcement, he faced physical injury, heavy drinking, and the crushing realization that his mental health was spiralling. A turning point came when tragedy struck his agency, and he realized he needed to ask for help.

What followed was a journey through recovery, self-discovery, and ultimately yoga—a practice that gave him the tools to calm his nervous system, rebuild his health, and reconnect with life in a way he had never experienced before. Today, he’s a yoga teacher with a mission: to bring healing and wellness to other first responders who feel stuck, burned out, or broken.

Our conversation is packed with insights that can change the way first responders view health and resilience.

Here are my Top 5 Nuggets from this episode:

1. Healing starts with honesty. Vance’s breakthrough moment came when he spoke the words, “I think I might kill myself” to his wife. Naming the struggle opened the door to support and recovery.

2. Sobriety is a foundation, not a finish line. Vance shared how stepping away from alcohol gave him clarity and energy to engage in deeper practices like yoga, therapy, and self-care.

3. Yoga isn’t about pretzels—it’s about presence. Forget the stereotype of twisting into impossible poses. For Vance, yoga is about breath, nervous system regulation, and learning to live in the moment instead of in constant fight-or-flight.

4. Community over competition. Vance’s vision for Yoga Rescue is to build safe spaces where first responders can exhale, take off the armour, and truly heal together.

5. Self-care is survival. Vance reminds us that careers in public safety are unforgiving if we don’t prioritize health. Police officers live an average of just five years post-retirement, and correctional officers even less. The time to care for ourselves is now—not later.

This episode is more than a story; it’s a call to action for every firefighter, police officer, paramedic, dispatcher, and leader in public safety.

🎧 Listen to the full episode: From Police Work to Yoga:  Vance Row on Recovery, Wellness and Purpose on Beneath the Helmet.

If this conversation resonates with you—or if you know someone who could benefit from hearing it—please subscribe, share, and spread the word. Together, we can cultivate a culture of resilience where first responders not only survive but thrive.

👉 Subscribe to Beneath the Helmet on your favourite podcast platform.
👉 Share this episode with your crew, your colleagues, and your community.

Because healing isn’t just possible, it’s necessary. And it starts with us.

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