Every day, five U.S. soldiers try to kill themselves.

[gateley]

WASHINGTON (CNN) --

Every day, five U.S. soldiers try to kill themselves. Before the Iraq war began, that figure was less than one suicide attempt a day.

The dramatic increase is revealed in new U.S. Army figures, which show 2,100 soldiers tried to commit suicide in 2007.

snip

Concern over the rate of suicide attempts prompted Sen. Jim Webb, D-Virginia, to introduce legislation Thursday to improve the military's suicide-prevention programs.

"Our troops and their families are under unprecedented levels of stress due to the pace and frequency of more than five years of deployments," Webb said in a written statement.

snip

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, took to the Senate floor Thursday, urging more help for military members, especially for those returning from war.

"Our brave service members who face deployment after deployment without the rest, recovery and treatment they need are at the breaking point," Murray said.

She said Congress has given "hundreds of millions of dollars" to the military to improve its ability to provide mental health treatment, but said it will take more than money to resolve the problem.

"It takes leadership and it takes a change in the culture of war," she said. She said some soldiers had reported receiving nothing more than an 800 number to call for help.

"Many soldiers need a real person to talk to," she said. "And they need psychiatrists and they need psychologists."

more... http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/02/01/military.suicides/inde...

[DesertFlower]

1. and this is just the beginning. nt

[LoveleeRita]

2. my heart sinks when I read things like this...

:cry:

[midnight]

3. Let's start the healing process. Bring them home.

[Mnemosyne]

4. knr for more exposure. Thanks gateley. n/t

[gateley]

5. Thanks for the kick. These days threads like this sink fast. We can't forget

these people. I feel such sorrow for these "survivors" and for every person who is over there still. :cry:

[Mnemosyne]

6. Astounding how quickly

important threads drop these days.

I hear ya'. :cry::hug: