Final essay one

Veterans and Suicide

Mara C.

HSM 350-Intervention Methods in Human Services

CSU

Dr. Bryant Okafor

July 28, 2020

Veterans and Suicide

Peace law and order are the most vital aspects for the success and development of any society or country. This is why security agencies are put in place to maintain law and order and ensure that no one disrupts the peace of a nation. The military is an important security agency that protects the country from external or foreign enemies who might disturb the peace and order of a region or a country. The United States of America’s army forces are one of the best forces in the world with a high level of combat training and are equipped with sophisticated technology and weapons, which enable them to deal with the enemies effectively.

Due to the vital role that the army places on the U.S. military personals who return home after being in the Warfield trying to stabilize peace in war-stricken areas and at the same time protecting their country, they should be cared for (Department of Veterans Affairs, 2018). Veterans are essential people in society as they sacrifice their lives to ensure that they enhance the security of the nation by fighting off enemies of the state. Veterans also strive to bring order and peace in the world through peacekeeping missions in war-affected regions. The government and other agencies need to ensure that veterans are well taken care of, especially their mental health.

Mental Disorder among Veterans

The violence, murders, and other life-threatening experience that the soldiers undergo in the Warfield affect their mental stability causing mental disorders. The traumatic events that the soldiers undergo in the line of duty and the horrifying things they do and see. At the same time, in the Warfield, cause them to developmental conditions that adversely affect them (McKinney et al., 2017). Due to the war in the middle east that has lasted for decades, America has deployed many troops to the region to battle its most prominent enemies, which are the radical Islam terror groups that are believed to be destabilizing peace in the middle east.

Because of the increase of soldiers deployed to the Middle East, there has been an increase in the cases of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among returning soldiers or veterans (McKinney et al., 2017). The growth of mental disorders among veterans has also led to the rise of suicidal cases among them as compared to their counterparts who are not in the army. Due to the high rate of suicides in veterans as a result of mental disorder and PTSD, it is high time that new prevention programs are implemented to prevent an increase in the cases among veterans.

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental condition that is caused by an individual being exposed or experiencing a traumatic and life-threatening event that affects their mental stability. Due to the traumatic experiences that soldiers undergo in the Warfield, the deaths, violence, murder, and physical injuries endured causes mental disability which causes one to relive the experience over and over again which causes depression, anxiety, disruptive behavior, and suicide (Wilks et al., 2019). Returning service members primarily from the Middle East region have shown a high prevalence of PTSD due to the high level of violence and traumatic events they experience in the Warfield.

According to the DSM-5 criterion of PTSD, it categorizes its symptoms into four different clusters. The first cluster is known as Intrusion, which is commonly associated with PTSD as it contains flashbacks, prolonged psychological distress, and spontaneous memories of a traumatic event (Reisman 2016). The second cluster is Avoidance, which is associated with external reminders of traumatic events and distressing memories or feelings. The third cluster is the Negative cognition and mood, which his associated with myriad emotions blaming oneself, a persistent negative perception of guilt or fear, and feelings of alienation. The final cluster is the Arousal cluster, which is related to aggressiveness, destructive behavior, recklessness, and hypervigilance.

Post-traumatic stress disorder that is induced by psychological trauma caused by war can be dated back to 490 B.C. as mentioned in the Greek history of the battle of marathon. PTSD cases in American soldiers increased during the American civil war of 1861 to 1865, and the numbers have continued swelling with each war in which American troops are involved. For many years, PTSD has been described in many different terms, such as shell shock, battle fatigue, and post veteran syndrome. The mental disorder was termed as PTSD in the 1970s, and by 1980 it was included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

Prevalence of PTSD among Veterans

It is a sad story to see that more than half of the soldiers deployed in the Middle East region that is Iraq and Afghanistan return home mentally unstable and are diagnosed with PTSD (Stanley et al., 2019). Over the past 13 years, more than 500,000 soldiers among those who were deployed in the middle east return home and are diagnosed with PTSD, which brings the rate to as high as 20% to 30%. The prevalence of PTSD cases in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts has proved to be high than in any other conflict. The high rates or cases can be a result of the urban-style warfare tactics used by the militia groups in Iraq and Afghanistan, which have led to the loss of lives and caused traumatic stress for the surviving soldiers.

Veterans and Suicide

The sad reality is that American veterans account for about 20% of all the suicide incidences reported in America. Veterans from 18-24 years are the youngest people in the army who are four times more likely to commit suicide as compared to their nonveteran counterparts of the same age. It is estimated that 18 to 4 veterans die each day by committing suicide, and the study has shown that PTSD can be associated with suicide cases among veterans (Department of Veterans Affairs, 2018)). PTSD results in comorbid psychiatric conditions such as depression, anxiety, anger problems, and disruptive behaviors that increase suicidal ideation and behaviors. Suicidal ideation and behaviors are prominent among persons who return home from active military service and those who have less experience in the field.

The complication of diagnosing and assessing PTSD among veterans has served as a massive challenge in dealing with the issue. It is also evident that psychiatric comorbidity of PTSD is high in veterans, especially major depressive disorder (MDD), as it is most likely to occur in veterans who are dealing with PTSD (Reisman 2016). The major depressive disorder causes the veterans to have somber depressive moods, low self-esteem, and suicidal thoughts. The MDD is a leading factor that pushes those veterans dealing with PTSD to fall into committing suicide due to the adverse effects of depression.

Substance use disorder (SUD) and dependence is also another psychiatric comorbidity of PTSD in veterans. Alcohol and substance abuse are prevalent in veterans dealing with PTSD than those who are not victims of the mental condition. Most veterans fall into substance abuse and dependency as a result of finding comfort and trying to stabilize their emotions and thoughts (Reisman 2016). The fact that veterans with PTSD tend to relieve or vividly remember the traumatic events that they underwent in the Warfield makes them experience the same trauma, stress, and emotions they did at that particular time, which disrupts their mental stability. Due to the trauma they experience, they turn to drugs so that they can easily fall asleep and avoid flashbacks.

*Mara, you requested help with Content Development:    Some body paragraphs do not end in closing sentences. Look at how you end one of the body paragraphs for an example:

Due to the trauma they experience, they turn to drugs so that they can easily fall asleep and avoid flashbacks.

This seems to be a supporting detail in your discussion, so this does not effectively sum up the discussion in your paragraph. Readers might not fully grasp the key idea of your paragraph since you do not end the paragraph with a closing sentence. What then is the overall idea of your body paragraph about substance use disorder? Try developing a closing sentence that answers this question and sums up the discussion in your paragraph. Review the other body paragraphs, and make sure that each end in a closing sentence

The increasing numbers of veterans who commit suicide in America are terrifying, which calls for the redefining and change of the current prevention programs that are active as it is evident that the programs are not as effective as they are supposed to be (Department of Veterans Affairs, 2018). Veterans are a vital part of the society and the country, which means that they should be taken care of to prevent them from committing suicide due to the impact that their experience in the Warfield had on their mental state. A new program should be launched to effectively deal with PTSD, which is termed as the leading cause of suicide among veterans.

The Prevention Programs in Use

The prevention programs that are currently being used to prevent suicide among veterans are pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. The non-pharmacological treatment or therapeutic approach for dealing with mental disorders such as PTSD and psychiatric comorbidity conditions associate with it includes cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Cognitive-behavioral therapy includes prolonged exposure (PE) therapy and Cognitive processing therapy (CPT), which are the recommended type of treatment for PTSD patients at the initial stage (Reisman 2016). There is also another type of treatment known as the eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), which has also gained popularity and acceptance in treating PTSD among veterans.

On the other hand, there is the pharmacotherapy approach of dealing with PTSD and the related mental disorders that affect veterans, leading them to commit suicide. The pharmacotherapy approach involves the prescription of medication to the veterans who have PTSD. The method includes the following Second-Line Therapies that are associated with administration of monoamine oxidase inhibitors, mirtazapine, and tricyclic antidepressants. Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors are another intervention in which paroxetine and sertraline are administered to the patients. Finally, the Alternative Pathways which involves the glutamate neurotransmission and novel multimodal anti-depressant vortioxetine modulate.

Proposed Prevention Program

The proposed prevention program that effectively deals with PTSD and other mental conditions that it is associated with is the Combined Pharmacotherapy and Psychotherapy. This therapeutic approach involves the administration of both the pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment interventions. The method combines therapy or counseling with medication at the same time which achieves more as compared to when the interventions are administered on their own. With the combined intervention or program, the impact is more effective as it offers a holistic kind of treatment dealing with all aspects of the condition, making it easy to manage.

Importance of Having a Prevention Program

The proposed new prevention or intervention program to prevent adverse effects of PTSD, which causes veterans to take away their lives, is the combined Pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy. The new approach or prevention program is an effective way of dealing with PTSD; hence it will effectively reduce the suicidal risk among veterans. This approach combines psychotherapy and medication, which is more effective as compared to when either method is used separately (Reisman 2016). Counseling or therapy sessions might work for some people and not others, while it is the same case with medication. The combination is effective in dealing with those veterans who do not respond to either approach when used separately. The combination of these approaches ensures that it holistically caters to the patient and reduces the effects of PTSD on the patient.

In the combined Pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy approach or prevention program, it involves psychiatrists or psychologists and nurses who offer care for the veterans either at home or in a psychiatric facility. The approach involves cognitive behavior therapy such as prolonged exposure therapy, cognitive processing therapy, which each take about 12 weekly sessions, among other non-pharmacological treatments such as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), which are useful in dealing with PTSD (Reisman 2016). It also involves medication such as sertraline, paroxetine, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI) venlafaxine, and the SSRI fluoxetine. With this combination, the impact of the prevention program is more effective and positive as it is holistic, which leads to a positive effect on the patient.

The proposed prevention method differs from the other programs as it combines the different tactics into one holistic approach, which achieves more. Indeed, various strategies that are used in the prevention of suicidal ideation and behaviors in veterans tend to affect everyone differently, as some do better with pharmacotherapy, and some react better to non-pharmacological methods. Since people tend to respond differently to the single method, it means that if they are combined, then they result in the best approach. Therapy combined with medication will always be the best option in dealing with mental issues as the approach serves every aspect of the patient well.

Impacts of Gender and Culture

Although the proposed new prevention or intervention program might be useful in dealing with the suicide issue among veterans and effectively managing their mental disorders, some barriers might negatively impact the provision of the service. The first barrier is gender as most of those who are affected by this condition are men, however, due to the stereotypes and fear of stigmatization in the community, most of the male soldiers do not seek help (Campbell et al., 2016). One of the stereotypes regarding soldiers, especially male soldiers, is that they are supposed to be strong, both mentally and physically. Because of this stereotype, many soldiers avoid seeking psychiatric help. In society, a man who goes for therapy, especially a veteran, is persisted as a weak individual; hence, they do not seek professional help.

Culture is another barrier that prevents veterans from seeking help when dealing with mental issues, and it enhances the suicidal rates among them. The culture of the army is focused on making the servicemen secure and deal with their problems on their own using what they have at hand, which becomes part of their life (Campbell et al., 2016). The culture in the community also affects how veterans seek mental health as they are viewed as role models. If they show weakness by seeking psychiatric help, it will alter their image and respect that they have in the community.

Conclusion

The issue of veterans committing suicide affects the community negatively, and that is why only effective intervention and prevention programs should be employed to deal with these issues. If the interventions of coping with the mental issues that the veterans are dealing with are not as effective as they should be, they do not offer the desired effects. Barriers such as community and gender affect how the prevention programs and interventions are implemented, and they should be changed to ensure that veterans seek help and do not let stigma and stereotypes attached to their gender prevent them from seeking help.

Running head: VETERANS AND SUICIDE

VETERANS AND SUICIDE 11

References