PTSD and suicide in the military- one story

[Peter1469]

PTSD and suicide in the military- one story

A SoF senior NCO suffering from PTSD and facing disciplinary action decided to use a permanent solution to solve a temporary problem. Can the military do more to help?

On July 11, 2013, my stepfather, a Green Beret, donned the uniform he wore proudly for 18 years and scrawled a note on an index card.


"To the regiment, I have ridden my pathetic life about as far down the spiral as anyone should have to. I accept my dishonor and shame. I am a disgrace to the regiment, and willingly execute this, my last humble act. I am so goddamned tired of holding it together. There has been no end to it all. God has played Jenga with our lives. Goodbye and good luck.


- Michael Bruce Lube, Sergeant First Class, US Army Special Forces"



Then he picked up his favorite gun, a Heckler and Koch USP .45mm pistol.

More at the link.

[PolWatch]

This is so sad....and so preventable. They are valuable when we need them, but not when they need us? Shake their hands & say 'thank you' and forget them? If anyone skips the full article, they need to read this:

'A reported 319 active-duty personnel committed suicide in 2012, compared to 290 who died in combat, according to a report by the Department of Defense. According to the DoD 2014 Suicide Prevention report, 479 service members committed suicide in 2013'

[Ethereal]

I know of at least two guys from my unit who committed suicide. There was some question of whether or not they were willing to seek out help. Often times, they let their pride get in the way. There is also the perception among vets that they simply cannot trust the VA with their private medical struggles and that they will just try to drug them up with pharmaceuticals.

[magicmike]

This is so sad....and so preventable. They are valuable when we need them, but not when they need us? Shake their hands & say 'thank you' and forget them? If anyone skips the full article, they need to read this:

'A reported 319 active-duty personnel committed suicide in 2012, compared to 290 who died in combat, according to a report by the Department of Defense. According to the DoD 2014 Suicide Prevention report, 479 service members committed suicide in 2013'

Unfortunately it happens. Congress needs to get off the pot and authorize the additional funding for treatment of PTSD Obama requested.

http://www.apha.org/policies-and-adv...s-for-veterans

[PolWatch]

I have friends that have struggled with PTSD since Vietnam. The response from the VA has been consistently too little, too late. Its not a repub/dem/lib/con. Its a national disgrace.

[whatukno]

PTSD is very treatable, given that the patient wants to go through with the treatment regimen.

It is hard to do because people who really have PTSD don't want to admit they have an issue, they feel like it's a weakness and that no one will care.
Or worse, they will be seen as a liberal for seeking help for their problems.

Because the official conservative standpoint on PTSD is that it doesn't exist and that any serviceman that experiences it is a bleeding hear liberal who should cut their own wrists instead of contaminating the GOP gene pool with their personal problems.

The GOP want's all the war, but will not ever accept the consequences of those wars. The mental health of the men and women that fight in these wars of corporate interest don't matter at all. They NEVER want to do the right thing by our soldiers coming home with trauma. Insisting on calling them bleeding hearts or conscientious objectors, in order to deny them the mental health coverage that they so deserve.

[Adelaide]

PTSD is very treatable, given that the patient wants to go through with the treatment regimen.

It is hard to do because people who really have PTSD don't want to admit they have an issue, they feel like it's a weakness and that no one will care.
Or worse, they will be seen as a liberal for seeking help for their problems.

Because the official conservative standpoint on PTSD is that it doesn't exist and that any serviceman that experiences it is a bleeding hear liberal who should cut their own wrists instead of contaminating the GOP gene pool with their personal problems.

The GOP want's all the war, but will not ever accept the consequences of those wars. The mental health of the men and women that fight in these wars of corporate interest don't matter at all. They NEVER want to do the right thing by our soldiers coming home with trauma. Insisting on calling them bleeding hearts or conscientious objectors, in order to deny them the mental health coverage that they so deserve.

I think that is an unfair characterization of conservatives and not necessarily an accurate one of liberals. Ignorance about mental health is a people problem, not really a political one or at least one based in politics. The stigma associated with PTSD and other illnesses is perpetuated by a lot of people who wouldn't fit into your neat categories.

Something that prevents many people from seeking help is the shame they feel, whether it is PTSD caused by service to their country or for another reason. It's part of the illness, along with other feelings that prevent people from taking steps to get help. It has little to do with whether they vote Republican or Democrat... or up here Conservative, Liberal or NDP.

[Adelaide]

I know of at least two guys from my unit who committed suicide. There was some question of whether or not they were willing to seek out help. Often times, they let their pride get in the way. There is also the perception among vets that they simply cannot trust the VA with their private medical struggles and that they will just try to drug them up with pharmaceuticals.

According to the VA website on PTSD, they seem to focus more on therapy...

Today, there are good treatments available for PTSD. When you have PTSD, dealing with the past can be hard. Instead of telling others how you feel, you may keep your feelings bottled up. But talking with a therapist can help you get better.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one type of counseling. Research shows it is the most effective type of counseling for PTSD. The VA is providing two forms of cognitive behavioral therapy to Veterans with PTSD: Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy. To learn more about these types of therapy, see our fact sheets listed on the Treatment page.

There is a similar kind of therapy called Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) that is used for PTSD. Also, medications have been shown to be effective. A type of drug known as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), which is also used for depression, is effective for PTSD.

That said, I had prolonged exposure therapy and it was basically torture that did nothing. EMDR is actually the excepted "most effective" therapy. And in terms of pharmaceuticals, most psychiatrists will prescribe a short-term drug to deal with immediate symptoms and then begin a behavioural therapy model. Or at least that is the accepted best medical/therapeutic practice by psychologists and psychiatrists. It's somewhat cruel to not prescribe something for the anxiety and for sleep in the interim between seeking help and the beginning of therapy (hopefully) working. Therapy won't be very effective if you can't ever get sleep, for example. Manage the initial symptoms and treat the long-term problem, basically, should be the goal according to the DSM and basically every book ever written on the subject.

[whatukno]

I think that is an unfair characterization of conservatives and not necessarily an accurate one of liberals. Ignorance about mental health is a people problem, not really a political one or at least one based in politics. The stigma associated with PTSD and other illnesses is perpetuated by a lot of people who wouldn't fit into your neat categories.

Something that prevents many people from seeking help is the shame they feel, whether it is PTSD caused by service to their country or for another reason. It's part of the illness, along with other feelings that prevent people from taking steps to get help. It has little to do with whether they vote Republican or Democrat... or up here Conservative, Liberal or NDP.

I agree, and if you carefully read my post you would see that I indeed agree with you.

PTSD can not only happen as you say through service to our country, but through other means too. Believe me I know. (I won't get into why I know, but I do know)

But conservatives (in general) do treat people that have PTSD as weak, inferior, and liberal. And would love nothing else than for them to "Stop whining about the problems they face, and man up" (a direct quote from more than a few conservatives)

It's a serious mental health problem and it brings with it a lot of shame. And a lot of whether or not they seek treatment does have to do with whether they identify as a Conservative or Liberal.

It's not really an unfair characterization of Conservatives at all. The sympathetic ones are only people that either have PTSD themselves, or personally know someone with PTSD, most others view PTSD sufferers as weak liberals looking for a handout.

[The Xl]

These $#@!s waste trillions on these wars and not nearly enough on the victims of these wars.