Protecting Our Troops: Soldier Suicide Rate Rising

It’s easy to get caught up in the college bubble and forget about everything except the excitement on your campus, but it’s always important to know what’s going on out in the real world, especially with significant events such as the current war.

I’m sure most of you know someone who is either in the military or somehow connected to the military, and a recent report should shock and worry you just as it did me when I read it. According to CNN, “Every day, five U.S. soldiers try to kill themselves. Before the Iraq war began, that figure was less than one suicide attempt a day. The dramatic increase is revealed in new U.S. Army figures, which show 2,100 soldiers tried to commit suicide in 2007.”

I don’t care what side of the political argument you are on, whether you technically consider yourself for or against the war, whether you are a democrat or republican, these are our friends, brothers, sisters, or relatives. The fact that they are attempting or even thinking about suicide after serving in this war is a scary reality that everyone needs to be more aware of.

So, why are the rates increasing so much? People offer up a couple of suggestions…

“Our troops and their families are under unprecedented levels of stress due to the pace and frequency of more than five years of deployments,” said one official.

“Our brave service members who face deployment after deployment without the rest, recovery and treatment they need are at the breaking point,” said another.

No matter what the reason is, I hope that more is done to ensure the safety of our troops and get them the help they need upon returning home from this war — and fast.