Military Mindset Toward Mental Health

Let’s talk Army mental health.

I recently read an article in the Army Times that reported a 20% increase in Army active duty suicides.

20% increase.

Let that sink in.

That was 138 Active Duty Army men and women who needlessly lost their lives last year.

138 sons and daughters.

138 people who volunteered to serve their country.

138 human lives lost in 2018 alone, not due to combat or anything of that nature, but because they felt that life was impossible to continue living.

These numbers only represent the numbers for the Army, and do not include suicide loss from other branches of the military.

138.

It was amazing to me that, considering the amount of resources available to service members, that some of these men and women didn’t seek help. Or maybe some of them did, the statistics didn’t say, but what I do know is that something needs to change.

Military mindset.

I have spoken with so many young soldiers recently, mostly men, who have flat out told me that they refuse to see mental health professionals because they don’t want to be viewed as weak, and “real men” can handle their own problems. I’ve even heard other soldiers describe formations that occurred when someone self-referred to behavioral health because they had suicidal feelings. Instead of using that as a teaching moment for the rest of the unit and commending that soldier for recognizing there was a problem and for being brave for seeking help, that particular First Sergeant chose to call that brave soldier a “pussy” behind his back and in front of the entire company.

Let that sink in for a moment. The highest ranking non-commissioned officer in the entire company called one of his own, a soldier in his care, a derogatory name for recognizing a problem and seeking help.

What kind of message does that send to the rest of the unit, some of whom are guaranteed to be battling mental health issues of their own?

Lets look at the facts.

Approximately 30% of the civilian population suffers from depression. That percentage is thought to be higher among the military population.

There is a correlation between combat exposure and PTSD. The more combat deployments, the more likely a soldier is to suffer from that disorder.

There is a strong correlation between combat exposure and Substance Use Disorders among military members. The more combat deployments one has experienced, the higher the likelihood of that individual self-medicating with drugs and alcohol.

In 2012, the number of suicide completions in the military surpassed that of combat casualties in 2011.

When is military leadership going to wake up and realize that the problem is not the lack of resources available, but by the fact that seeking help is often blatantly discouraged amongst the leadership? How many lives need to be lost for this to change?

The Army Times article stated the following:

“We must continue to ensure commanders have the policies and resources they need to prevent suicides, that all leaders have the tools to identify soldiers who are suffering and to positively intervene, and that all soldiers view seeking mental health care as a sign of strength.”

The fact is that there are policies and place and there are many resource options for these individuals. What good are policies and resources when it is the leadership themselves condemning soldiers for seeking help?

To any military members who might be reading this:

Seeking help when you have a problem that is too big for you to handle by yourself, that is brave.

Seeking help, despite the current military mindset, that is courageous.

Please do not let your leadership shame you for seeking help. And if they do, seek help anyway. What they think ultimately doesn’t matter. You matter. Take the time to take care of yourself. To get better.

You are so worth it.

Inspired Vrkasana

Today, for the very first time ever, I had an “aha” moment, where inspiration hit me in the middle of yoga class.

I have heard of this happening to other people. I’ve often heard stories of inspiration coming to yogis during their practice. It could be as simple as a mantra or a solution to their problems of the day. I was always a little envious upon hearing such stories, because inspiration like that was something I craved. In a yoga practice I am very lucky if I’m able to turn my “monkey mind” off, as I am always thinking about things I need to do later, what I am going to cook for dinner, a busy case at work, or a yoga sequence I need to write for my own yoga classes.

But today, inspiration hit.

A friend of mine from my yoga teaching training (YTT) is teaching a series at a local yoga studio called “Yoga for Caregivers”, which is focusing on self-care, as most of us are caregivers in some fashion. I took this class because of course I wanted to support my friend, but mostly because I think she is an amazing teacher and wanted to take her class.

Let me pull a Tarantino here. Before the class, I was trying to finish some homework, meet another deadline I had, and prepare dinner before I left the house. It was frantic and I was stressed. Honestly, going to this class became just “one more thing” I had to do, and the thought of not going to this class had crossed my mind because I knew if I explained why I couldn’t go that my friend would be understanding. I talked myself out of that negative thinking, though, and forced myself to leave the house despite the seemingly endless list of things needing to be done.

I’m so glad I did.

For the first time in a long time, I was able to turn my mind off. I was able to stop focusing on the fact that I needed to put fuel in my car on the way home because my take was on “E”, the groceries I needed to pick up after that, and the chores that I had to do before I went to bed later in the evening. I was able to focus on my breathing, on my practice, and only things that were going on in the four walls surrounding me – everything else that had no place in that room managed to stay out of the room. It was beautiful.

So there I was, doing a pose called Vrksasana, or tree pose. When doing any balance pose it is helpful to establish a focal point, something that doesn’t move, in order to help with balance. There was a woman in front of me, and she had her journal and her black, thick-rimmed glasses on the floor; I used her glasses as my focal point. As I became comfortable in my pose, for the first time since class had started, my mind began to wander. I lost my drishti, my focused gaze, and began to wobble in the pose, losing my balance.

That is the exact moment that inspiration came to me.

I had lost my balance because I lost my sight of what was important to me at that moment, which was my focus to hold the pose. Only once I regained my focus was I able to regain my balance and hold the pose.

That seemingly insignificant event made for introspection – What other areas of my life require more focus? What other areas of my life require balance?

While I need to reflect on those questions a bit more in order to discover the answers, I do know one thing: self-care is so incredibly important. I preach this to my counseling clients to the point where they are nearly sick of hearing it, although I find it sometimes difficult to make that time in my own life. I am so very glad that I took that hour to invest in myself today, as the physical activity and insight gained during that time were invaluable.

Take time to observe areas in life that may require a bit more focus or balance.

Take time to invest in yourself.

You are most certainly worth it.

Namaste