Suicides

How you can help veterans every day

It’s not only medical professionals who can help a veteran who is dealing with despair and contemplating death by suicide. You can also help.

Military Unit, Ravaged by War, Regroups Back Home to Survive the Peace

Suicides drive Bravo Company veterans to test whether reuniting will help overcome lingering effects of battle.

Researchers Attempt To Predict & Prevent Suicide Using Deep Learning And Math

For years scientists have focused on the causes behind veteran suicide. Now the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and several national labs are teaming up to use deep learning and mathematics to intervene before it happens. And like many scientific advancements birthed by military necessity, the attempt will ultimately serve all facets of the population, including older Americans.

V.A. Officials, and the Nation, Battle an Unrelenting Tide of Veteran Suicides

While the V.A. has been the public face of the issue, veterans are in many ways an amplification of the same factors that drive suicide in the broader American population: a fragmented health care system, a shortage of mental health resources, especially in rural areas, a lack of funding for suicide research and easy access to guns.

VA Struggles To Unlock The Reasons Behind High Suicide Rates Among Older Veterans

Much of the focus by the Veterans Health Administration has been on the growing number of younger veterans who commit suicide. However, statistics show that the suicide rate for elderly veterans is higher than that of non-veterans of the same age.

White House Plan Breaks Taboo: A Focus On Guns And Veteran Suicide

This summer the Trump administration rolled out the President's Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of Suicide (PREVENTS) - a long awaited strategy to bring down the rate of suicide in the military and among civilians. It focuses on enlisting community partners and a public awareness campaign to fight the stigma around seeking help during a mental health crisis. Critics in congress have said the plan isn't proactive enough. But it does address one issue that has been seen as politically taboo: access to guns.

Battling Depression And Suicide Among Female Veterans

The suicide rate for female veterans has soared 85 percent in recent years, leading the military, VA and advocacy groups to try new ways to improve women's mental health care during and after service.

Each day 17 veterans commit suicide. A new campaign featuring soldiers' stories is trying to change that.

“I was stressed out all the time; I was crying myself to sleep a lot, drinking very heavily. It was a very hard time.” Groleau is one of 22 veterans who agreed to be interviewed for Lionhearted, a new Veterans Day campaign that seeks to reduce the high veterans’ suicide rate with videos and a short film telling stories of combat and healing,

Questions and Answers about Veteran Suicides

Why doesn’t the V.A. track suicides by unit and command? Wouldn’t that tell us a lot about conditions inside those units and who might be in danger?

Suicide Among Veterans Is Rising. But Millions for Outreach Went Unspent by V.A.

The suicide rate among veterans is about twice that of the general population, and has been rising among younger veterans who served during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Military's Suicide Rate Is Much More Complicated Than Combat Stress

Why are so many American soldiers killing themselves? The answer is more complicated than PTSD from war.

The Truth About 22 Veteran Suicides A Day

There is a statistic that has been widely quoted in the veteran community that highlights an estimated 22 veterans a day are committing suicide. It is a deeply troubling statistic and has galvanized the veteran movement, both from inside the military and veteran communities, and externally, to bring about a wide range of programming nationwide. The statistic, however, is widely misunderstood.

We Can Blame the Rise in Veteran Suicide on the Healthcare System

Half the vets who killed themselves told someone they were considering it.

Serving Those Who Serve: Upstream Intervention And The Uphill Battle Of Veteran Suicide Prevention In The US

“How has serving impacted you?” This simple question was posed to service members and veterans via Twitter by the US Army prior to the Memorial Day weekend. To date, the Twitter post has amassed more than 11,000 responses that collectively encapsulate the lived realities and consequences of military service—some positive, but most were overwhelmingly harrowing tales recounting post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, sexual assault, and suicide.

Hope For The Warriors

We believe those touched by military service can succeed at home by restoring their sense of self, family, and hope. Nationally, Hope For The Warriors provides comprehensive support programs for service members, veterans, and military families that are focused on transition, health and wellness, peer engagement, and connections to community resources.

Military Suicide Research Program

The The MSRC Research Program runs cutting-edge empirical studies to further the knowledge base on topics such as risk assessment, treatment, and prevention, as they pertain to suicidal behavior in the military.runs cutting-edge empirical studies to further the knowledge base on topics such as risk assessment, treatment, and prevention, as they pertain to suicidal behavior in the military.

Misson 22

Mission 22 is a non-profit who combats the ever-rising veteran suicide rate. Every day, more than twenty veterans are lost to suicide. Mission 22 wants to bring that number to zero.

Real Warriors Campaign

The Real Warriors Campaign encourages help-seeking behavior among service members, veterans and military families coping with invisible wounds.

The Lionhearted.

From the front lines to back home, our veterans have made tremendous sacrifices for their families, their communities and our country. But the brave and determined have become increasingly lost and forgotten. The ravages of PTSD, body mutilation due to IEDs, and nightmares resounding with echoes of the battlefield are often the private hells of our returned heroes and warriors. The home that once emboldened our veterans during their most harrowing war time experiences has too often ignored or neglected them upon their return.

K9s For Warriors

K9s For Warriors is the nation’s largest provider of service dogs to military veterans suffering from Post-traumatic Stress Disability, traumatic brain injury and/or military sexual trauma as a result of military service post-9/11.

Save A Warrior

Save A Warrior​™ (SAW™) is a meaningful conversation about the nature of human experience. A nationally-recognized program, we offer novel, judgment-free solutions to returning Veterans, Active Duty Service Members, and First Responders with Post-Traumatic Stress (PTS).

Warrior Wellness Alliance

For service members and veterans impacted by the invisible wounds of war (traumatic brain injury, post traumatic stress, etc.), accessing care for those injuries can be challenging. The Bush Institute's Warrior Wellness Alliance is an innovative alliance that connects high-quality care providers and veteran peer networks to empower seeking treatment for the invisible wounds of war.