Life in the military can be rewarding for military members and their families but our personnel and dependents go through stressful situations like deployments, moving to a new base or just standard life stressors.
These stressors can sometimes become overwhelming and can possibly lead to thoughts of harming oneself. It’s imperative that military members and their families know the risk factors that could lead to thoughts of suicide.
Risk factors that could possibly lead a person to attempt to take their own life are:
◾Legal problems
◾Personal or workplace relationship issues
◾Financial struggles
◾Medical problems
◾Family issues
◾Overly worked at place of employment
◾Sleep concerns
The risk factors for suicide can sometimes be seen easily to the person or others around them but can also be easily be concealed. If you see people around you displaying risk factors it’s important to engage with them early.
Asking them if they are ok or if they have stressful situations going on can help ease their risk factors or help guide them to agencies like mental health, the chaplains or Military Family Life Consultants.
Warning signs for suicide are different than risk factors, are more observable and should be responded to immediately. One of the most common warning signs of suicide is change. Drastic changes in a person’s mood, sleep schedule or behavior can be possible warning signs of suicide.
People thinking about suicide may display some of the behaviors listed below:
◾Talking about feeling empty, hopeless or having no reason to live
◾Making a plan or looking for a way to kill themselves
◾Talking about wanting to die or wanting to harm themselves
◾Voicing guilt or shame
◾Speaking about feeling trapped or feeling there are no solutions to personal problems
◾Talking about being a burden to others around them
◾Thinking or talking about hurting others or death
◾Showing extreme mood swings or rage
◾Giving away possessions, making a will or saying goodbye to friends or family
◾Drastic changes sleeping or eating habits
◾Becoming anxious or agitated easily
If you see someone displaying these warning signs or you are experiencing them yourself, call 911 or go to the emergency room immediately. For more information on how to overcome suicide or any problems causing you stress, go to www.resilience.af.mil.
We also encourage military members, family members, government civilians and base contractors to reach out to their unit leadership, supervisors, wingmen or key spouses for help.
| Date Taken: | 01.15.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 01.26.2021 15:29 |
| Story ID: | 387669 |
| Location: | BILOXI, MISSISSIPPI, US |
| Web Views: | 26 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Suicide awareness: Seeing the warning signs, by SSgt Holly Cook, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
