By Mike Lavelle
November 11 is Veterans Day, and we honor our military veterans for their service. In this column, however, I want to focus on one group of veterans – that is those veterans (of any age) who are struggling with the lasting consequences of trauma.
This past May, President Donald Trump signed an executive order, called the PREVENTS (President’s Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of Suicide) Initiative, to respond to the threat of suicidal ideation among veterans. The initiative provides 8.6 billion towards mental health services. Previously, the Veteran’s Administration relied upon the veteran to self-identify when needing help. The initiative specifically aims to equip state and local governments with the resources to identify and intervene with at-risk veterans in a more pro-active manner.
In part, this stems from the growing awareness of the increase in veterans taking their own lives. The Department of Veterans Affairs recently released a report showing that at least 60,000 veterans died by suicide between 2008 and 2017, although the total population of veterans declined by 18% during that span of years. More than 6,000 veterans died by suicide annually, according to the VA’s 2019 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report. Overall (in 2017), the suicide rate for veterans was 1.5 times the rate for non-veteran adults. Also, it is not just young vets from Iraq and Afghanistan who are taking their lives, as almost seven out of 10 veterans who have committed suicide were over the age of 50, according to a Department of Veterans Affairs study.
There are many different factors, causes, and reasons why veterans are at increased risk for suicide, but one simple fact is that, for many veterans, they experienced significant traumatic events at a relatively young age (many of them still teenagers), with lasting consequences.
I am reminded of reading a friend’s Facebook post where he writes of “being affected, at least on a subconscious level, by the upcoming anniversary of being blown up in a rocket attack on October 20th, 1969 when I ended up being one of two survivors leaving 3 other Marine brothers dead. I guess time heals … to a point?”
To a point. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, or even if you are having a hard time dealing with a traumatic event, contact the Veterans Crisis Line to receive free, confidential support and crisis intervention available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Call 1-800-273-8255 and Press 1, text to 838255, or chat online at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat.
