Page 616 - Total War on PTSD

ended up taking his life on the property shortly thereafter. In a recorded message, Tombs stated: “When I asked for help, they opened up a Pandora’s box inside of me and just kicked me out the door. That’s how they treat Veterans ‘round here.”
According Toombs’ father, David Toombs, “As far as my son, he told me the main trigger for him, was that hopeless, helpless feeling, that would draw you so far down.” For many Veterans suffering with PTSD, overcoming those feelings of hopelessness and helplessness can feel like a Sisyphean curse — every time they seem to make progress, they end up sliding backwards. As Rieman confirms, this feeling that the cycle can never be broken is often what leads to suicide. Of course, as Rieman knows personally, the cycle can be broken, but doing so requires hard work on the part of the individual. However, it also requires a broader societal shift to re-shaping our cultural approach to the military, mental health generally, and the inter-relationship between the two.
The remainder of this chapter consists of several ideas (and their historical origins) that Rieman and I discussed to assist Veterans and non-Veterans alike in charting a path forward toward ending the Veterans suicide epidemic.
***
Currently, stakeholders in the Veterans’ community, talk a lot about the Veterans’ suicide epidemic, and how to prevent Veterans suicides. I believe ‘suicide prevention’ to be somewhat of a misnomer. Yes, we certainly want to avoid any Veteran reaching a point where they feel that suicide is their only option. But, oftentimes, there are many intervening steps that can be taken before a Veteran arrives at this point. Indeed, as
616 of 1042