As suicide rates rise, the U.S. military seeks to address mental health

Editor’s Note: If you or someone you know is depressed or having suicidal thoughts, call 988. TTY, use the transfer service of your choice or call 711 then 988. En Español, 1-888-628-9454.

In the year After completing his tour in Afghanistan in 2013, Dion Williamson was emotionally numb. Over the next several years of posting abroad, more warning signs appeared.

“It’s like I lost a place,” said Williamson, a Navy lieutenant commander who suffered from confusion, depression, memory loss and chronic fatigue. “I went to the captain and said, ‘Sir, I need help. Something’s wrong.'”

When he wants to face the Pentagon The rate of suicide in the military ranks is declining., Williamson’s experiences shed light on the reality for service members seeking mental health help. For most, just admitting their problems would be scary. And what comes next can be frustrating and depressing.

Williamson, 46, eventually found solace in a treatment program that included months of hospitalization and horseback riding. But she had to struggle for years to get the help she needed. “I wonder how I got through it,” she said.

In March, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the formation of an independent committee to review military mental health and suicide prevention programs.

Between 2015 and 2020, active duty service members who commit suicide have increased by more than 40%, according to the Department of Defense. The number has risen by 15 percent in 2020 alone. In long-term suicide hotspots like Alaska — where service members and their families struggle with extreme isolation and harsh climates — the rate has doubled.

In the year In 2021 A study of the war expenditure project Since 9/11, four times as many service members and veterans have committed suicide as died in combat. The study listed specific stressors in military life: “exposure to high levels of trauma – mental, physical, moral and sexual – stress and burnout, the influence of the military’s highly masculine culture, continued access to guns, and difficulty reintegrating into civilian life.”

The Pentagon did not respond to repeated requests for comment. But Austin has publicly acknowledged that the Pentagon’s current mental health offerings — including the Office of Defense Suicide Prevention, established in 2011 — are inadequate.

“It’s imperative that we continue to take care of all our teammates and reinforce that mental health and suicide prevention are top priorities,” Austin wrote in March. “We certainly have a lot of work to do.”

Last year, the Army issued new guidelines to its commanders on how to handle mental health issues in the ranks. Complete with summary slides and script. But long-term challenges remain. Many soldiers fear the stigma of admitting to mental health issues within the internal military culture of self-reliance. And people seeking help often find that stigma is not only real, but compounded by bureaucratic obstacles.

Just like the case Food insecurity in military familiesa network of military-adjacent charities has sought to fill the gaps through a variety of programs.

Some are purely recreational, such as an annual fishing tournament in Alaska designed to provide fresh air and socializing for service members. Others are focused on self-care, like the Armed Services YMCA program that provides free childcare for military parents to attend therapy sessions.

The situation in Alaska is particularly dire. In the year In January, after a series of suicides, Command Sgt. Major Phil Blaisdell led the troops in one Emotional Instagram post. “When is suicide the solution,” he asked. “Please DM me if you need anything. please …”

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said while posting to Alaska may be a dream for some service members, for others it’s just a nightmare that needs to be addressed.

“When you see the statistics jump, you have to pay attention to that,” Murkowski said. “Nowadays, you’ve got everybody. The Joint Chiefs are looking at Alaska and saying, ‘Holy shit, what’s going on over there?’ they found.

Alaska’s posting pressures are compounded by a shortage of therapists on the ground. During a visit to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska earlier this year, Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuz heard from health care workers who say they are understaffed, burned out and unable to see patients in a timely manner. If a soldier needs help, they often have to wait weeks for an appointment.

“We have people who need our services and we can’t reach them,” one longtime consultant told Warmuz at a meeting. “We need workers and until we get them, we will keep soldiers dying.”

The annual Fighting fishing competition It was founded in Seward, Alaska, to “get the kids out of camp, to get them off their feet for the day and out of their heads,” says co-founder Keith Manternach.

In the year The tournament, which began in 2007 and now involves more than 300 service members, includes a day of underwater fishing, followed by a celebration party with prizes for the biggest catch, the smallest catch and the sickest catch.

“I think there’s a big mental health thing to it,” Manternach said.

Not just in Alaska.

Sgt. Antonio Rivera, an 18-year-old veteran who served three tours in Iraq and a year at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, freely admits to suffering from severe PTSD.

“I know I need help. There are signs and I’ve waited a long time,” said Rivera, 48, who is stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. “I don’t want my children to suffer because I don’t get help.”

He’s doing yoga, but says he wants more. He is reluctant to ask for help in the military.

“I personally feel more comfortable talking to an outsider,” he said. “It allows me to express more without worrying about how it will affect my career.”

Others say it’s a struggle to get help.

Despite “tons of briefings and brochures” about suicide and PTSD, Williamson said she found herself struggling for years to find respite and treatment.

Eventually, she entered a month-long inpatient treatment program in Arizona. On her return, a therapist suggested equine-assisted therapy, which had good results.

Now, Williamson is a regular at Cloverleaf Equine Center in Clifton, Virginia, where riding sessions can be combined with a variety of treatments and exercises. Working with horses has long been used as therapy for children with physical or mental disabilities and autism. But in recent years, it has been adopted to help service members with depression and PTSD.

“To be able to work with horses, you have to be able to control your emotions. They communicate through body language and energy,” said Shelby Morrison, director of communications for Cloverleaf. “They respond to the energies around them. They respond to negativity, positivity, stress, happiness.

Military clients, Morrison said, “come in with a lot of anxiety, depression, PTSD. … We use it to get horses out of their wakes.

For Williamson, regular riding sessions helped calm her down. She is still struggling, and her long campaign for treatment has strained her relationship with several superiors. She currently has limited work and is not sure if she will retire when she reaches her 20th birthday in March.

Still, she says equine therapy has helped her feel optimistic for the first time in recent memory.

“Even if I can’t get out of bed right now, I’ll make sure to come here,” she said. “I don’t even know where I’d be if I didn’t come here.”

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