Military Suicide Research Paper

Suicide in the United States & Military

Have you ever wondered how people can conclude that suicide is the only answer? Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the United States and twenty veterans alone commit suicide a day (“Veteran Suicide Statistics”). In 2015, approximately 494,169 people were admitted to the hospital for self inflicted injuries (“American Foundation Suicide”). Suicide is occurring too often for preventable reasons due to lack of awareness, military mistreatment, and mental disorders.
Before proceeding with this argument, you must know that I have had multiple different experiences with suicide in my life. My brother, Scott, committed suicide in 2012 while being in the Army at just 19 years old. He never told us
Debbie Sheehan, a writer for the Army, states, “since 2005, military suicides have been on the rise, increasing from fewer than 100 in 2005 to nearly 200 in 2008”. These numbers have continued to rise since 2008 and, “Army suicide numbers are the highest of the Armed Services at 20.2 per 100,000, the Marines had 19, the Air Force 11 and the Navy 11.3” (Sheehan). Causes of high suicide rates in soldiers include PTSD, mental disorders, being away from family, military mistreatment, hazing, and deployment (Sheehan). Minimal information is available to the public about military mistreatment and hazing because the Army does not want the public to know about it. I know it exists and occurs often because my brother, Scott, experienced it. For example, soldiers in Scott’s platoon were forced to do push ups with a sergeant's foot on their back in 102 degree weather on pavement that was almost 110 degrees. This act caused layers of skin on his hands to melt away. It is understood that the military is to prepare soldiers for circumstances of war and deployment, however, this is just abuse. The military also does not provide adequate help to soldiers who are at potential risk of suicide. My family spoke with some of Scott’s friends in his platoon after his death to get their input on the Army. His friends all seemed to feel the same way and agreed on the fact that the Army views people who have depression as weak and punish people for trying to get help. One segregant made a soldier go into the gas chamber multiple times because of his desire to get out of the Army. Military officers should be treating soldiers like they want to be treated and not as if they are insignificant human beings. If the military provided adequte help for soldiers who are struggling and kept a close watch on military officers to control abuse, suicide could be prevented.. When Scott chose to kill himself in his dress blues,