Soldier Suicide Attempts Skyrocket

[sabra]

Source: CBS News/WP

(CBS) CBS News broke the story of the epidemic of suicides and attempted suicides among veterans in November.

And tonight, new Army figures illustrate how serious the problem has become among active military servicemembers. It's part of an exclusive report that will appear in Thursday's Washington Post and on washingtonpost.com.

...

According to internal Army documents, the number has gone from less than 500 in 2002 to more than 2,000 last year. The number of actual suicides is also climbing, and the Army's suicide rate is higher than at any time in the past 25 years.


Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/01/30/eveningnews/main3772831.shtml

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/30/AR2008013003106.html?hpid=topnews

Soldier Suicides at Record Level
Increase Linked to Long Wars, Lack of Army Resources


By Dana Priest
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, January 31, 2008; Page A01

Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside, a psychiatric outpatient at Walter Reed Army Medical Center who was waiting for the Army to decide whether to court-martial her for endangering another soldier and turning a gun on herself last year in Iraq, attempted to kill herself Monday evening. In so doing, the 25-year-old Army reservist joined a record number of soldiers who have committed or tried to commit suicide after serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.

"I'm very disappointed with the Army," Whiteside wrote in a note before swallowing dozens of antidepressants and other pills. "Hopefully this will help other soldiers." She was taken to the emergency room early Tuesday. Whiteside, who is now in stable physical condition, learned yesterday that the charges against her had been dismissed.

Whiteside's personal tragedy is part of an alarming phenomenon in the Army's ranks: Suicides among active-duty soldiers in 2007 reached their highest level since the Army began keeping such records in 1980, according to a draft internal study obtained by The Washington Post. Last year, 121 soldiers took their own lives, nearly 20 percent more than in 2006.

At the same time, the number of attempted suicides or self-inflicted injuries in the Army has jumped sixfold since the Iraq war began. Last year, about 2,100 soldiers injured themselves or attempted suicide, compared with about 350 in 2002, according to the U.S. Army Medical Command Suicide Prevention Action Plan.

[Jed Dilligan]

1. I might actually off myself

if the other choice was fighting this war.

Those poor kids.

[cascadiance]

2. You need to study past statistics to see how horrible this may become!

If you look at the following stats:

1) ratio of wounded to KIA in WWII: 1 to 1

2) ratio of wounded to KIA in Vietnam: 3 to 1

3) ratio of wounded to KIA in First Gulf War: 9 to 1

4) ratio of wounded to KIA in current Iraq war: 17 to 1

5) KIA in Vietnam 58,000 +

6) last year or so it was announced that more vets from Vietnam actually committed suicide than soldiers who died during the war (over 58,000 suicides!)

7) Soldiers KIA this war. Officially close to 4000. Contractor (mercenary) deaths were estimated at over 800 a few months ago. 5000 would be a safe estimate.

Do the math!

If there were only three soldiers that were wounded to every death in Vietnam, and later an equal number of suicides to KIA happened, think of what that means with a 17 to 1 ratio of wounded to KIA!!! If you speculate that being about the same ratio then perhaps use the following equation:

#Suicides = (17 * #dead) / 3

#Suicides = (17 * 5000) / 3

#Suicides = roughly 28,333!!

Go and see "Valley of Elah". Here's a good place to buy the DVD now:

http://www.deepdiscount.com/viewproduct.htm?productId=32919471

That really shows you in the gut the time bomb that's ticking with PTSD not only for suicides but homicides as well here from those that are coming back from this horrible war!

[Alcibiades]

3. And the nature of the injuries

whether psychic or physical, is seldom discussed. Please, let's not mention how many legs, testicles and eyes have been lost in toto.

I do hope that the number of suicides is far lower than your numbers would seems to indicate. If nothing else, however, it does show how much there needs to be done for veterans' mental health care.

[otherlander]

4. When you send children to hell

they come back crazy.

[gratuitous]

5. It's the gift that keeps on giving - for decades!

Oh, how we love the war lust in young men! It's so intoxicating, and just fits in so well with our national myth of redemptive violence. Sure, it's kind of messy with the deaths and the wounded and the collateral damage and decades of residual violence and suicides, but think of all the pretty pictures the teevee got to broadcast during shock and awe!

[bemildred]

6. Yep, morale is great. nt