Veteran Suicide

The Department of Defense (DoD) released the DoD Annual Report on  Suicide (ARSM) in the Military: Calendar Year (CY) 2023 today. The  report provides annual data on suicide counts and rates among Service  members and their dependents and outlines current and ongoing suicide  prevention efforts across the Department.

Every death by suicide is a tragedy. That's why on May 7, 2022,  Secretary Lloyd J. Austin established the Suicide Prevention Response  and Independent Review Committee (SPRIRC) to conduct a review of  clinical and non-clinical suicide prevention and response programs which  provided over 100 recommendations. As a result of the SPRIRC  recommendations, in September 2023, Secretary Austin announced a suicide  prevention campaign plan across five lines of effort: fostering a  supportive environment, improving the delivery of mental health care,  addressing stigma and other barriers to care, revising suicide  prevention training, and promoting a culture of lethal means safety with  83 enabling actions.

In the first year since Secretary Austin's establishment of the  suicide prevention campaign plan, the Department has completed 20 SPRIRC  recommendations and we have an aggressive path forward with  unprecedented investments for FY25 to combat current trends. The  Department will continue to build on these efforts to demonstrate our  unwavering commitment to the wellness, health, and morale of our Force,  and honor the    

memory of those lost to suicide.

About the data and findings in the Annual Report on Suicide in the Military:

• The Department assesses suicide rates - the number of suicide  deaths per 100,000 people per year - to better understand changes or  trends in suicidal behavior. Suicide rates fluctuate from year to year.  
  • In this context, 'not statistically significant' means that  experts who analyze the data cannot be certain this is a true change  and, instead, changes from one year to the next could be due to natural  variations in data. "Statistically significant" means that there is high  confidence we are observing a true change.
• In CY 2023, 523 Service members died by suicide, which is more than  the previous year (493). The Total Force rate – which is the focus of  the ASRM report – of suicide deaths per 100,000 Service members was 9  percent higher than in 2022.
• Active Component suicide rates have gradually increased since 2011.  The 2023 Active Component rate is higher (12 percent) than 2022. This  12 percent increase was not statistically significant.
• Active Component suicide rates were similar to the U.S. population  in most years between 2011-2023 after accounting for age and sex  differences.
• Most Service members who died by suicide were young, enlisted men.  

Suicide  is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders  (including depression, bipolar disorder, autism spectrum disorders,  schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical  disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome) and substance use disorders  (including alcohol use disorder and the use of and withdrawal from  benzodiazepines) are risk... Wikipedia.org 

• 📞 Help is just a phone call away: Call or Text or Chat the 988 Suicide &  Crisis Lifeline at 988 any time of day. The Lifeline provides free and  confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis  resources for you or your loved ones.
• Specialty: Psychiatry, Clinical psychology, Clinical social work
• Usual onset: 15–30 and 70+ years old
• Risk factors: Depression, bipolar disorder, autism spectrum disorders, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders, alcohol use disorder, substance use disorder
• Prevention: Limiting access to methods of suicide, treating mental disorders and substance misuse, careful media reporting about suicide, improving social and economic conditions
• Deaths: 793,000 / 1.5% of deaths (2016) and rising each year.

• Call or Text or Chat the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline 988. Hours are available 24/7 and the cost is free. 
• OR Text  HOME to 741741 to reach a trained Crisis Counselor through Crisis Text  Line, a global not-for-profit organization. Free, 24/7, confidential.
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• Please help us help our Veterans.
• Veteran Suicide is still extremely high in 2024 heading into 2025.