Back in August 2024, Matt Dunaj found all of his years as a firefighter catching up to him, when they then became too much to handle. He knew he wanted to help people his whole life, but with a mix of substance abuse, work, and financial challenges, Dunaj decided there was only one option left for him until someone unexpectedly saved him.
Sitting alone in his basement, Dunaj loaded a gun as he decided this was the only way out from the stress of his everyday life. Mia, his 3-year-old goldendoodle heard the gun load and went to see what the noise was.
Dunaj said, “And in that moment, thank the Lord the dog was home because she heard it and as soon as that happened she came up to me and in that unconditional love she licked me in my face and kind of got me out of it.”
While Mia sat there with him, he thought about all of the people who would be devastated by losing him. His family, friends, and coworkers would all lose someone they cherished deeply. He realized that this wasn’t the way he wanted to handle things and he knew at that moment he needed help.
The next morning Dunaj called his brother to come and take the gun from his house and decided to reach out to find help. He contacted the IFF Center for Excellence, which is a mental health and substance abuse treatment facility located in Maryland that is designed for firefighters and EMS workers.
Within 2 weeks, Dunaj was receiving the life-changing care he so deeply needed. This treatment gave him a new outlook on life and helped him find a reason to want to live. Since then, he has been able to manage his stress and mental health much better.
He kept quiet about his story until he recently lost one of his coworkers to suicide. He wanted to advocate for people that there is always a better choice when struggling with thoughts of ending your life.
“Don’t stop — keep moving forward,” Dunaj said. “Eventually, something will stick and you’ll get the help you need. I’m living proof.”
