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By Robert Burns The Associated Press June 8, 2012 WASHINGTON Suicides are surging among America's troops, averaging nearly one aday this year - the fastest pace in the nation's decade of war. The 154 suicides for active-duty troops in the first 155 days ofthe year far outdistance the 88 U.S. forces killed in action inAfghanistan, according to Pentagon statistics obtained by TheAssociated Press. The numbers reflect a military burdened with wartime demands fromIraq and Afghanistan that have taken a greater toll than foreseen adecade ago. The military also is struggling with increased sexualassaults, alcohol abuse, domestic violence and other misbehavior. Because suicides had leveled off in 2010 and 2011, this year'supswing has caught some officials by surprise. The reasons for the increase are not fully understood. Amongexplanations, studies have pointed to combat exposure,post-traumatic stress, misuse of prescription medications andpersonal financial problems. Army data suggest soldiers withmultiple combat tours are at greater risk of committing suicide,although a substantial proportion of Army suicides are committed bysoldiers who never deployed. The unpopular war in Afghanistan is winding down, with the lastcombat troops scheduled to leave at the end of 2014. But this yearhas seen record numbers of U.S. troops killed by Afghan troops, andthere also have been several scandals involving U.S. troopmisconduct. The 2012 active-duty suicide total of 154 through June 3 compareswith 130 in the same period last year, an 18 percent increase. Andit's more than the 136.2 suicides that the Pentagon had projectedfor this period based on the trend from 2001 to 2011. This year'sJanuary-May total is up 25 percent from two years ago, and it is 16percent ahead of the pace for 2009, which ended with the highestyearly total thus far. Suicide totals have exceeded U.S. combat deaths in Afghanistan inearlier periods, including for the full years 2008 and 2009. The suicide pattern varies over the course of a year, but in eachof the past five years the trend through May was a reliablepredictor for the full year, according to a chart based on figuresprovided by the Armed Forces Medical Examiner. The numbers are rising among the 1.4 million active-duty militarypersonnel despite years of effort to encourage troops to seek helpfor mental health problems. Many in the military believe that goingfor help is seen as a sign of weakness and thus a potential threatto advancement. Kim Ruocco, the widow of Marine Maj. John Ruocco, a helicopterpilot who hanged himself in 2005 between Iraq deployments, said herhusband was unable to bring himself to go for help. "He was so afraid of how people would view him once he wentfor help," she said at her home in suburban Boston. "Hethought that people would think he was weak, that people wouldthink he was just trying to get out of redeploying or trying to getout of service, or that he just couldn't hack it - when, inreality, he was sick. He had suffered injury in combat and he hadalso suffered from depression and let it go untreated for years.And because of that, he's dead today." Jackie Garrick, head of a newly established Defense SuicidePrevention Office at the Pentagon, said experts are stillstruggling to understand suicidal behavior. "What makes one person become suicidal and another not istruly an unknown," she said. Dr. Stephen N. Xenakis, a retired Army brigadier general and apracticing psychiatrist, said he worries that many senior militaryofficers do not grasp the nature of the suicide problem. A glaring example of that became public when a senior Army generalrecently told soldiers considering suicide to "act like anadult." Maj. Gen. Dana Pittard, commander of the 1st Armored Division, lastmonth retracted - but did not apologize for - a statement on hisArmy blog in January. He had written, "I have now come to theconclusion that suicide is an absolutely selfish act." He alsowrote, "I am personally fed up with soldiers who are choosingto take their own lives so that others can clean up their mess. Bean adult, act like an adult, and deal with your real-life problemslike the rest of us." He did also counsel soldiers to seekhelp. His remarks drew a public rebuke from the Army, which has thehighest number of suicides and called his assertions "clearlywrong." Last week, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, said he disagreed with Pittard "inthe strongest possible terms." The military services have set up confidential phone hot-lines,placed more mental health specialists on the battlefield, addedtraining in stress management, invested more in research on mentalhealth risk and taken other measures. The Marines established a counseling service dubbed "DStressline," a toll-free number that Marines can call anonymously.They also can use a Marine website to chat online anonymously witha counselor. The Marines arguably have had the most success recently in loweringtheir suicide numbers, which are up slightly this year but areroughly in line with levels of the past four years. The Army's numbers also are up slightly. The Air Force has seen aspike, to 32 through June 3 compared with 23 at the same point lastyear. The Navy is slightly above its 10-year trend line but down abit from 2011. As part of its prevention strategy, the Navy has published a listof "truths" about suicide. "Most suicidal people are not psychotic or insane," itsays. "They might be upset, grief-stricken, depressed ordespairing." The suicide numbers began surging in 2006. They soared in 2009 andthen leveled off before climbing again this year. The statistics include only active-duty troops, not veterans whoreturned to civilian life after fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan.Nor does the Pentagon's tally include nonmobilized National Guardor Reserve members. I am an expert from cartridge-filter-housing.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Self Cleaning Water Filter Manufacturer , China Bag Filter Housing, Stainless Steel Filter Housing,and more.
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