Local bomb squad news prompts opportunity to educate on military suicide.

The local news for June 28th for Mahopac, New York has been surprising.  This town, which to my understanding does not have much action as far as bomb squad presence, awoke to news of the presence of the bomb squad at a local home (see Lohud.com article linked below).  It turns out that there was a self-inflicted gunshot wound at a private residence.  Upon further investigation it became clear the home was home to many weapons which prompted the bomb squad presence.

My mention of this incident is not because I have a particular affinity to local police investigations and the like, but because I learned in my reading that the man who shot himself was a Marine.  Please note that it is unclear whether this man shot himself purposefully, however, it reminded me of a previous blog post that I had posted on my blog http://www.tludwiglaw.com/ . I have retrieved this article from the archives because it is a subject that is so important.  As the wife of a Marine, I take any and all opportunities to educate others on this epidemic. 

Military Suicide Sharply Increasing – What Is Causing This Epidemic?

Recent headlines have spotlighted the growing number of suicides within the U.S. military.  According to the Washington Post, 349 suicides were reported among active-duty military in 2012.  Compare this number to the 229 troops killed in combat in Afghanistan the same year.

As the wife of a former Marine the statistics within the Marine Corps are even more distressing.  The same study showed a 50% increase in suicides among Marine’s in 2012, whereas the Navy and Air Force saw a 15 and 16% increase respectively.  Attempted suicides have also risen to shocking highs.

What is causing these sharp increases in suicide and attempted suicide rates?  A July 2012 study by the Pentagon of 72 soldiers whom have attempted suicide pointed to “intense emotional distress” as a major contributing factor.  According to USA Today, all 72 soldiers included this as a reason for their attempted suicide.

In addition to “intense emotional distress,” the soldiers cited an average of 10 distinct reasons as contributing factors.  It is thus clear that this epidemic may have many causes beyond emotional distress. New therapies to treat depression and post-traumatic stress disorder are currently being studied by the National Center for Veterans’ Studies with promising results.