2012 A RECORD YEAR FOR ARMY SUICIDES

2012 ON RECORD AS WORST YEAR FOR ARMY SUICIDES:  325 CONFIRMED OR POTENTIAL CASES AMONG ACTIVE AND NON-ACTIVE PERSONNEL

 

The US Army is grappling with record number of suicides from active and non-active members of the armed forces.  2012 represents the worst year in a number of recent years that has seen the number of suicide deaths skyrocket.   

This number might not be telling to some, until it is compared with the total number of casualties in the initial operation in Afghanistan, operation Enduring Freedom, where the total of Army deaths was 219.  

 The Army maintains that is trying to address the problem aggressively to meet this challenge by offering services both in prevention and grievance counseling for the families of the deceased.

For years this ominous trend has occupied a central place in the Pentagon's mind.  One of the tactics employed to stem this problem is teaching a technique called 'resiliency', to diminish the deleterious effects of stress.

The Army contends that there seems not to be a direct link between the stress of combat and suicide deaths, however, soldiers are loath to report stress to their superiors in fear of being singled out and to avoid backlash from their peers who might fear that their companion in arms is not up to par on the battlefield.  The other issue is that in many instances Delayed Stress Symptoms does not manifest itself until the body has made the change from the combat arena to civilian life, when the mind adjusts to the difference in environment and the level of alertness to danger in the brain subsides, leaving in its wake the triggers for DSS episodes.

The Army has put in place a number of programs that aims to offer assistance to the returning soldier.  One of them is a psychological evaluation.  However, the exam is not done for all returning troops.  One of the long standing problem in offering meaningful and effective psychological counseling is the lack of sufficient professionals to offer one on one counseling and therapy to the soldiers, so that they might not have the proper therapy, counseling and in some cases don't even see a doctor at all.

Much has been made of the connection between the suicides and the lack of jobs for returning soldiers.  With recruits averaging lower and lower ages at recruitment, some straight out of high school, it is often the case that returning troop might not have the skills to find meaningful employment.

A study conducted many years ago pointed to the fact that urban warfare or warfare in which the enemy is not clearly identifiable poses a much greater risk than conventional warfare.  The idea that the enemy can be anyone in a crowd or a city, places the brain in a constant state of alert, from which later on it struggles to recover.  However, the Army seems to not have sufficient tools to establish whether these findings apply to the current crisis of suicidal deaths.

The suicide hotline is 800 -273 - 8255

Adapted from an article in CNN/2.2.13

Source: CNN/ 2.2.13