American Suicides With Military

[Ruger#3]

Not related to actual combat but more to long deployments in general than a that military spouses these days are a more restless lot than in the WWII days. I’m sure being drafted vs volunteering has a little to do with it.

So when a combat vet has gone through hades and then has nothing to come back home to…..

I think that's a cultural thing in general, not just military. Folks change spouses like they change socks.

Military life is demanding and spouses need to know what they are buying into from the start. There's civilian jobs that are very similar sans the combat.

 

[Redbow]

One of the best friends I ever had both of us were in Vietnam together for a while took his own life in 2015. He never told any of his family what he was considering for himself. I have had many bouts with PTSD, it isn't an easy thing to deal with. I have been to see the VA shrinks but the last one I saw years ago was IMO crazier than I was. And I don't draw one thin dime from the VA.

 

[Ruger#3]

I'll never forget at 17.5 years the AF tried to buy me out during the Clinton force reduction. Offered me 115K to discharge me and wash their hands of any obligations. I told the guy from personnel I was staying, and the AF would be paying more than that in retirement. I've been drawing my retirement for almost 30 years now. Can't believe some folks bit on that. It showed how much .gov really cared about us. Stress comes from a lot of directions.

 

[Dutch]

And I don't draw one thin dime from the VA.

Neither do I.

 

[Ruger#3]

Me either…..

 

[Redbow]

I'll never forget at 17.5 years the AF tried to buy me out during the Clinton force reduction. Offered me 115K to discharge me and wash their hands of any obligations. I told the guy from personnel I was staying, and the AF would be paying more than that in retirement. I've been drawing my retirement for almost 30 years now. Can't believe some folks bit on that. It showed how much .gov really cared about us. Stress comes from a lot of directions.

The Army did the same thing had a neighbor that took the offer with 17 years of service.

 

[crackerdave]

Biggest difference is that back in the 40's it took a few weeks decompressing with folks just like you on a slow boat to get home, now a days your duck'n bullits and look'n at buddies get'n blowed up one day and home "try'n" to adjust to civilian life the next.

Not an easy adjustment to make,even without the post trauma issues.

 

[Ruger#3]

The Army did the same thing had a neighbor that took the offer with 17 years of service.

Crazy, the medical care alone will offset for most.

 

[Nicodemus]

I`ve known a few WWII veterans, most never talked about the bad stuff and didn`t act like anything really bothered them. Two Gentlemen come to mind. One was sort of an Uncle. He never would say just what he did or even what branch he was in, but a family member told me that after the war was over, he was instructed to stay in Germany for a while to "take care of some business", and his weapon of choice was a knife. He would wake up some nights screaming because of horrible nightmares and guilt.

The other one was a man I worked with for a couple of years in the early 80`s who became a friend. He was part of the Bataan Death March, put on a ship with all the other survivors, taken to Japan and spent the rest of the war in a Japanese prison of war camp. He did finally open up and tell some stories, some that would near about make you sick to your stomach. He weighed 200 pounds when captured, 98 pounds when liberated. In spite of all those events and terror, he seemed alright otherwise.

 

[Toliver]

The problem with PTSD is it manifests differently. A lot of people assume the person with it is going to flip out and become violent and show it to the world. The reality is that most of us hold it together and suffer silently. When I was at my lowest point with depression and suicidal ideation, not a single person around me knew I was considering pulling out in front of a semi to make it look accidental or that I came scary close to doing it with my Glock one day when the demons had just beaten me down. I appeared normal to everyone else. Their shock and disbelief when I finally spoke about it was profound.

 

[crackerdave]

Mental illness is a much-neglected problem with many people people affected and very few affordable places to be treated.

County clinics are all most folks can afford and they are barely better than nothing.They don't exactly get the best of the doctors or nurses,and there's a high turnover rate.

 

[gobbleinwoods]

Veterans never drink alone.

 

[BriarPatch99]

If you saw my "Navy Kid" post ...found out that two of the Navy recruits committed suicide during the 5 weeks of basic so far....
Bad deal....

 

[Toliver]

For those who went to the Outdoor Blast, did you meet the guys from Fallen Outdoors? Or already know about them? Seems like a pretty good group. Perhaps a resource thread stickied to share groups like this we're aware of for people to look at if they need some support?