10
was already higher than the general population’s before the in-
crease. As a result, veterans die by suicide at more than 1.5 times
the rate of nonveterans.
Since 2001 the United States has been involved in wars in
Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria, leaving many veterans with post-
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and greater risk for suicide.
“War inflicts permanent psychic
scars on survivors,” says Danny
O’Neel, a US Army veteran who
served in Iraq. “That trauma can
be more deadly than war itself.
More of my brothers from that
deployment have died from sui-
cide than combat: Nine were
killed in Iraq; 15 have killed them-
selves back at home.”
7
O’Neel was nearly one of
them. “On July 14, 2012, drown-
ing in grief and guilt, I tried to kill
myself,” he remembers. “Like so
many veterans, I had found civilian life desperately difficult. War had
drained me of joy. The sights, sounds and smells of the battlefield
had been relentlessly looping in my head. The suffering seemed
endless. And so, thinking there were no other options of escape, I
turned to suicide.”
8
After surviving his suicide attempt, O’Neel dedi-
cated his life to helping other veterans. He founded an organiza-
tion, the Independence Fund, that has teamed up with the VA to
provide mental health training services for vets and their families.
Active duty military personnel also have a higher suicide rate
than the general population: 17 per 100,000, compared with 14
per 100,000 for the general population. As with veterans, the
trauma of combat often contributes to suicidal thoughts. “The
real problem is the culture in the military that says suck it up and
drive on, and if you can’t suck it up and drive on, then you’re
weak and you have no place here,” says Ellen Haring, a retired
“War inflicts perma-
nent psychic scars on
survivors. That trauma
can be more deadly
than war itself. More
of my brothers from
that deployment have
died from suicide than
combat.”
7
—Danny O’Neel, a US Army
veteran who served in Iraq
