Tirrell Creasman

Ms. Fender
English IV, Period III
10/28/2016
Behind Closed Doors: Veteran/Active Duty Suicide Awareness
Self inflicted homicide or suicide for lack of a better word is a problem that has been
plaguing humanity since the beginning of time or at least since the last few centuries of modern
human existence. There has always been death in Humanity from wars, murders, and even
accidents. So why is it such a taboo when a human being commits suicide? As human beings we
view suicide as bad or unthinkable. Yet everyday people commit suicide because they feel as if
they are unworthy, unloved, or just so stressed out that death seems like the only plausible
explanation. Yet many civilized countries such as the United States or the United kingdom and
their citizens avoid the topic all together rather civilian suicide or military suicides its just not a
topic to talk about in a public venue. Well maybe its because people dont know how to address
the topic of suicide, when to address the topic of suicide, and how to help those that are currently
thinking about suicide. Such as Americas Veterans.
Ah America when a person thinks of America in todays modern society they tend to
think of freedom, guns, beer, burgers, and the American dream. Many people fight for that
American dream and many have fought for it. From George Washington, to the recent high
school graduate that just signed his/hers papers and is off to join the United States Military. The
Military is a long tradition in many American families and communities. And the warfighters are
as brave as they come, for America is the land of the free and the home of the brave after all. Yet
for some reason after all of the prades on Veterans day and the fourth of July; Americas

warfighters dont feel quite as at home as they use to while in the service. The service made them
and civilian life just isnt easy enough to settle into. Enfact for 22 Veterans a day its too much.
Rather it be the inability to conform into civilian society full or rather its the war that never left.
22 Veterans a day commit suicide.
Now, so what 22 is that large of a number, but in fact it is. 22 people is an extremely large
amount of human lives. Out of the current United States population( 301.3 million ) about 1.4
million or .4% of the American population is serving in the United States Military currently. An
about 22 million or 7.3% of the American population are Military Veterans. ("Demography of
the United States." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2016 ) (Chalabi, Mona.
"What Percentage Of Americans Have Served In The Military?" DataLab. N.p., 2015. Web. 13
Oct. 2016.) Now out of that 1.4 million Active Duty personnel at least 1 commits suicide a day,
and out of the 22 million Veterans this country has at least 22 commit suicide a day. A day that
means the United states is losing 365 Active Duty personnel and 8030 Veterans a year.
Eventually those numbers are going to cause many problems, soon the United States will run out
of Veterans with so little joining the Military and over some time the Military itself will be
affected due to the lost of life. Frankly its time to address what is happening behind closed doors
and it is time to help those in need and to help spread the word about the dwindling population of
both Veterans and Active Duty persons. Its time to address what is truly happening behind
Americas closed doors.
Occasionally the American public will hear about suicides on national television, by the
media doing so they are covering and spreading awareness of what suicide is. Suicide by
definition is the taking of ones own life. But its not just awareness to know what the word
means or the action of it, suicide awareness is the act of preventing and helping those in need.

There are many variations of suicide prevention. From the suicide hotline: 1-800-273-8225 , to
organizations such as StopSoliderSuicide. Or the #Stop22 movement. These organizations or
hotlines are made specifically to help those that have served in the military and are considering
the act of suicide. It is like a candle in a dark room. These organizations can be a beacon of hope.
In Fact they even help family members identify signs of a Veteran possibly thinking about
suicide. Some of those signs can consist of Appearing sad or depressed most of the time,
Feeling anxious, agitated, or unable to sleep or many other signs listed
at ,https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/SignsOfCrisis/Identifying.aspx ("Veterans Crisis Line."
Identifying Signs of Crisis. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2016.)
It is important to be visual of a warfighter as they adjust into the civilian side of life. It is also
important to help support these organizations as well. These organizations are basically a first
line of defence on the war against suicide. No organization though runs for free, and helping
those in need is a costly venture as well. Thus that is why there is multiple ways to help these
organizations and to help Veterans in local communities. Donation pages through
https://www.classy.org/ or http://www.stop22.org/ can help to promote these organinzations and
to help them get much needed assianatnce to Veterans comtinplanting suicide. The local V.A. is
also another way to help assist local Veterans. Going to a local V.A. is a great way to make an
impression on a Veterans life. Just letting them know that someone cares for them, to let them
know that they arent abandoned is sometimes all a Veteran needs to help them feel like living
again.
Other Groups and organizations that help Veterans are groups like Operation Enduring
Warrior, or local VFWs. Which strive to not only help Veterans but to also help them ease into
life as a civilian. Of course thats another factor. Civilian life can be a tremendous change. It can

be extremely stressful trying to fit into a society that doesnt completely understand uniformity
and the brother/sisterhood the military has. Sometimes all a Veteran needs is someone to talk too.
If a Veteran is trying to talk to you about their problems it is very important to their mental state
that you listen and try to understand what is going through their minds. In fact that is a good way
to help anyone contemplating suicide. The D.O.Ds ( Department of Defense) suicide prevention
and awareness month is September, so help to spread the word and to let people know that
suicide is a real and it is something that plagues a fairly large amount of people in the world not
only Veterans. From 22 to 0 is the goal, instead of 22 marble slabs let's keep 22 breathing happy
and healthy human beings on this earth. Those that can tell stories and to help the American
people not forget the sacrifices made by previous Americans to preserve the History of the
United States of America.

Citation
"United States Department of Defense." United States Department of Defense. N.p.,

n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2016.

"Home." Stop 22. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2016.
"Military & Veteran Suicide Prevention | Stop Veteran Suicide |." Stop Soldier Suicide.
N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2016.
"Veterans Crisis Line." Veterans Crisis Line. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2016.

("Demography of the United States." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d.

Web. 13 Oct. 2016 ) (Chalabi, Mona. "What Percentage Of Americans Have
Served In The Military?" DataLab. N.p., 2015. Web. 13 Oct. 2016.)

Websites

https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/
http://stopsoldiersuicide.org/
http://www.stop22.org/
https://www.classy.org/
http://www.defense.gov/
http://www.va.gov/