Suicide among US veterans 22 per day, 3 times national rate: Report

[douglas9]

A new official US study says that nearly 22 war veterans of the country commit suicide per day, an estimate that is almost 20 percent higher than the 2007 rate suggested by government’s Department of Veteran Affairs (VA).

The two-year study, performed by a VA researcher, further suggests that two-thirds of the veterans who kill themselves are 50 year old or older, indicating that the surge in the suicide rate among US veterans is not chiefly shaped by soldiers that recently fought in the US-led war in Iraq and Afghanistan, The Washington Post reports on Friday.

“The rate is going up in the country, and veterans are a part of it,” said VA epidemiologist Robert Bossarte, who conducted the study, further showing that the overall number of suicides in the United States climbed by about 11 percent between 2007 and 2010.

According to the study’s data, the suicide rate among US veterans is nearly three times the overall national average but an identical percentage of male veterans in their 50’s commit suicide as do non-veteran men in the same age group.

http://www.presstv.com/detail/2013/02/01/286701/22-us-veterans-commit-suicide-daily/

[Victor_c3]

1. I saw those numbers the other day

I also found and read that suicide note that has been going around on the internet written by SGT Somers. Those are some hard numbers and that is a hard message to read. I pair the two items together and I really do get what a lot of these guys must be feeling.

One or two of SGT Somers' quotes really hit me hard "Too trapped in a war to be at peace, too damaged to be at war" sums me and a lot of what I feel - and I know I'm not alone. It's tough. There is nothing I want more than to go back out on patrol again, but the Army won't have me anymore.

How do we deal and how do we treat the vet PTSD and suicide epidemic? I have a nifty 70% rating for PTSD from the VA and I also have been suffering from the suicide idealization thing. I know I should seek more help than I currently get, but at the same time I'm just tired of it all. I hate going to appointments and I hate talking to doctors and counselors. I haven't experienced any barriers to prevent me from getting the care that I'm supposed to be getting from the VA other than myself. More doctors and more money being thrown at the problem won't help me. I bet that a lot of us "broken" veterans are just tired of it all and there is nothing that can be done to help us.

[ShawnRIN]

2. Amazing stats

Is there any studies on the "why?"