Hill 1

Amanda Hill

Allison Fernley

English 1010

10 September 2017

Veteran Suicide

22 veterans a day, that is a number that veterans become familiar with very quickly, 22

veterans a day die by suicide but, is it really an issue? Today, the United States faces political and

racial tensions, an uncertain economy, utilization of land and resources questions, unequal wealth

distribution and a failing healthcare system, along with military uncertainty. If by chance you do

not know a veteran or have not lost a veteran friend or family member to suicide, this issue may

pale in comparison to the troubles this nation faces. However, if you know a veteran, you have

some inkling of what they struggle with; if you have lost a veteran family member or friend to

suicide, then its prevention may be a cause you can get behind.

According to the Veterans Administration (VA), in 2014 an average of 20 veterans

committed suicide every day (Thompson). Of those 20 veterans that died, 6 of them utilized the

services provided by the VA, and while veterans only account for 8.5 % of the United Statess

population, in 2014 their suicides accounted for 18% of all suicide deaths among American

adults (Thompson). After adjusting for age and gender differences in 2014, risk for suicide was

21% higher for veterans than U.S. civilian adults, the risk of suicide was 18% higher among
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male veterans than among adult male U.S. civilians, and 2.4 times higher among female veterans

than adult female U.S. civilians (Thompson).

Now to be fair to the argument, there are some that feel the data provided by the VA is

misleading, that the VA, veteran programs and the veteran community itself is too obsessed with

the number 22. According to Bare, the number 22 comes from the VAs 2012 Suicide Data

Report. This report examined death certificates from only 21 states between the period of 1999 to

2011. In The Truth About 22 Veteran Suicides A Day, Bare states as an example that the

average age of veterans who committed suicide in this data set were almost 60 years old, an age

that does not represent the Iraq and Afghanistan veteran generation. In The Truth About 22

Veteran Suicides A Day, Bare quotes a more recent study that found between the years of 2001

and 2009 there were 1,650 deployed veteran deaths, of that number only 351 were suicides. Over

that 9 year period, the math shows there was less than one veteran suicide a day (Bare).

While the VA retains their mantra of, one suicide is one suicide to many, others feel

that the VA is doing a terrible job at taking care of veterans. Brian Mast of Floridas 18th

Congressional District, is one of those individuals; however, he feels veterans should do more to

help themselves. Mast feels that giving servicemen and women the option of taking an oath not

to commit suicide and also help others at the risk of doing so, will help lower the number. He is

so confident in fact that he submitted his Oath of Exit proposal as a bipartisan amendment to

the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act on July 13 (Lineman). It passed the House and is

waiting on Senate approval before becoming law; however, if it does pass the oath will not be

legally binding.
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Mast feels that if a service member says they will do something they will do it given their

integrity and compassion for fellow veterans (Lineman). It is worth noting that as a staunch

Republican, Masts Oath of Exit sticks with his core party principles of, only we can save us

from ourselves. (Lineman). The oath taker is not vowing to seek out professional help when

they are struggling with life and death but instead to seek out fellow veterans. This keep-in-the-

family-method is grounded in the understanding of veteran relationships however, what happens

when a fellow battle buddy is unresponsive or unhelpful in a time of need? This oath alienates

those with psychological problems from seeking out government resources that are otherwise

available to them (Lineman). Masts oath may appeal to those who spent a lifetime in the

military and know nothing but the duty it instills in them. However, it may not appeal to those

who joined later in life, or those that did not buy into the whole sense of duty, despite how hard

the military tried to engrain it in them; and while Mast feels optimistic about his proposal, others

have their doubts.

A recent study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, compared the

effectiveness of crisis-response planning to no-suicide contract such as Masts proposal

(Lineman). Crisis-response planning provides patients with a card that identifies ones personal

warnings, utilizing coping mechanism, activating social support, and accessing professional

services while a no-suicide contract outlines what not to do in a crisis like, do not kill yourself.

The study found that crisis-response planning yielded more effective results in preventing suicide

attempts, resolving suicidal ideation, and reducing inpatient hospitalization for high-risk active

duty soldiers (Lineman).

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Several mental-health professionals feel that while it may be possible for a veteran to

adhere to an oath like this, among general populations, no-suicide contracts have yet to yield

promising results (Lineman). Dr. Will Siu, a psychiatrist who works with patients suffering from

PTSD and other trauma-induced mood disorders does not feel that an oath would have a

significant impact on suicide rates among veterans. He does feel however that building

meaningful interpersonal connections between veterans and their communities is worth pursuing

(Lineman).

Being apart of the veteran community I agree that one suicide is one suicide to many;

however, I do respect the individuals right to choose. I know how terrifying the change from

solider to regular citizen can be and the challenges it creates. I personally know that gaining

access to the medical services can be quite daunting and in the case of a medical emergency may

seem downright impossible and hopeless at times. If it passes, I do not know if the Oath of Exit

will help lessen the number of veteran suicides. In my personal opinion I do not think it will have

an impact, as there is still a stigma attached to mental health services, When you are supposed to

be the best, supposed to be the strongest, supposed to be the most resilient, needing help can

leave one feeling ashamed. I do not know what is the correct path to take in facing such a tragic

epidemic as this, perhaps working on getting rid of the cultural shame attached to needing mental

health services, or just help in general, especially for our veterans.

 Works Cited

Bare, Stacy. The Truth About 22 Veteran Suicides A Day. Task & Purpose, 2 June 2016

taskandpurpose.com/truth-22-veteran-suicides-day/. Accessed 10 Sept. 2017.

Linehan, Adam. Is A New Military Oath Really The Best We Can Do To Fight Veteran

Suicide? Task & Purpose, 25 July 2017, taskandpurpose.com/new-military-oath-really-

best-can-fight-veteran-suicide/. Accessed 10 Sept. 2017.

Thompson, Caitlin. Facts about Veteran Suicide. VA Suicide Prvention Program, Veterans

Administration, July 2016, www.va.gov/opa/publications/factsheets/

suicide_prevention_factsheet_new_va_stats_070616_1400.pdf. Accessed 10 Sept. 2017.

Reflection Questions:

1. As a result of my conference with you, I revised my paper as follows: I worked on my

organization and editing. I moved things around as you suggested as well as created

paragraphs. I cleaned up my in text citations and checked my punctuation. I also added a

touch of personalization.