Suicide In The Military
Eng101
April 27, 2013
Suicide in the military
In recent years suicide within the United States armed forces has risen to the number one cause of death. ” More U.S. military personnel have died by suicide since the war in Afghanistan began than have died fighting there. The rate jumped 80% from 2004 to 2008” (Thompson). On average an Army member falls victim to suicide every other day. Most of these victims are males with combat experience.
In the past ten years or so soldiers have been pushed virtually to their breaking points while supporting multiple tours overseas serving our country. In military training one is taught to not be an individual but rather a part of well oiled machine that must be able to run on fumes. Many soldiers are confronted with situations in combat that no one can be specifically trained for and or to deal with. Soldiers are known for being strong and doing things for a career that most people couldn’t handle for one day, so one could imagine how hard it is for this type of person to ask for help when all they know is self-sacrifice. Although service members are human beings they are also considered military assets which the government in some cases has spent millions of dollars in training and support.
Military personnel often move from one base to another very frequently which may inhibit their chances to establish strong lasting relationships. There are numerous effects that moving so frequently can have on a soldier as well as his or her family, many being long lasting issues that are sometimes never dealt with. These young soldiers come back from war and sometimes feel as though they have no one to talk to about the issues that they may be dealing with. With family being so far away it can sometimes be hard to talk about such emotional and sensitive issues over the phone or other forms of long distance communication.
It seems that the military is taking this issue much more seriously in the recent years. “Since 2009, the Pentagon
April 27, 2013
Suicide in the military
In recent years suicide within the United States armed forces has risen to the number one cause of death. ” More U.S. military personnel have died by suicide since the war in Afghanistan began than have died fighting there. The rate jumped 80% from 2004 to 2008” (Thompson). On average an Army member falls victim to suicide every other day. Most of these victims are males with combat experience.
In the past ten years or so soldiers have been pushed virtually to their breaking points while supporting multiple tours overseas serving our country. In military training one is taught to not be an individual but rather a part of well oiled machine that must be able to run on fumes. Many soldiers are confronted with situations in combat that no one can be specifically trained for and or to deal with. Soldiers are known for being strong and doing things for a career that most people couldn’t handle for one day, so one could imagine how hard it is for this type of person to ask for help when all they know is self-sacrifice. Although service members are human beings they are also considered military assets which the government in some cases has spent millions of dollars in training and support.
Military personnel often move from one base to another very frequently which may inhibit their chances to establish strong lasting relationships. There are numerous effects that moving so frequently can have on a soldier as well as his or her family, many being long lasting issues that are sometimes never dealt with. These young soldiers come back from war and sometimes feel as though they have no one to talk to about the issues that they may be dealing with. With family being so far away it can sometimes be hard to talk about such emotional and sensitive issues over the phone or other forms of long distance communication.
It seems that the military is taking this issue much more seriously in the recent years. “Since 2009, the Pentagon
Cited: Works Thompson, Mark; Gibbs, Nancy. Time. 7/23/2012, Vol. 180 Issue 4, p22-31. 10p. 8 Color Photographs, 3 Charts. The War On Suicide? Langford, Linda; Litts, David; Pearson, Jane L. American Journal of Public Health. Jan2013, Vol. 103 Issue 1, p31-38. 8p. Using Science to Improve Communications About Suicide Among Military and Veteran Populations 1. What is the cause or effect you are analyzing in your thesis? For this paper I am analyzing the cause of the increase in suicidal behavior among military service members. 2. How have you explained the cause-and-effect relationship? I explained the probable causes that lead to this behavior and the effect it is having on the outlook of the U.S. military. 3. Have I organized my causes and/or effects logically? Yes, by starting with statistics and supporting examples and creating the body of the story with an educated opinion. 4. Have I concluded my essay effectively? Yes, I conclude with a recap summary of the paper in its entirety 5. Identify one change you have made as a result of proofreading your essay? After proof reading I choose to move a sentence from one paragraph to another and I also found a few typos.