Soldier Suicide Rates Increasing Due to Moral Injury

Online, June 15, 2010 (Newswire.com) - SOLDIER SUICIDE RATES INCREASING DUE TO MORAL INJURY

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - Military leaders are working hard to reduce troop suicides, but the fact that the suicide rate has recently risen has them scrambling for answers. The success of our military depends on the psychological health of our soldiers, so it is important to all of us that experts discuss and research this issue and discover some lasting answers.

The rate of suicide in the Marine Corps is higher than that of any other branch of service. The Marine Corps suffers 24 suicides per 100,000, 11 more than they did in 2006. In comparison, the civilian suicide rate is 20 per 100,000.

One interesting theory on the rising suicide rate has come to the fore, and it is called "moral injury." Soldiers who suffer moral injury have been exposed to or been part of something that goes against their basic belief system. Some killings can be justifiable but unintended, such as civilian killings. Participation in such actions may violate a core belief system, which results in moral injury. Witnessing or taking part in a battlefield indiscretion can also run counter to core beliefs and produce moral injury.

What is the determination that leads a soldier to suffer moral injury and decide to take his or her own life? A feeling that activities they have participated in or witnessed on the battlefield make them unforgiveable. When particular people feel that they do not deserve forgiveness, they experience hopelessness without any expectation that their status will ever change.

Access to Therapy Network (ATTN) is a one-of-a-kind company that dedicates itself exclusively to real-time, face-to-face mental health counseling to soldiers and their families wherever they are. ATTN is an innovative telemental health therapy company that brings skilled, qualified, and licensed professionals to soldiers and their families, any time and any place. They offer a variety of specialists, including psychiatrists, psychologists, marriage/family counselors, life coaches, and social workers, as well as mediation, conflict resolution, and crisis management professionals. Here are some of the services ATTN extends to soldiers through its revolutionary video process:
• Psychotherapy and Counseling.
• General and Marriage/Family Counseling
• Life and Career Coaching
• Mediation and Conflict Resolution
• Crisis Management and 24-Hour Hotline

Endorsement: "The Access to Therapy Network is a new approach for delivering top-quality therapy via the Internet. I strongly recommend this delivery system and its therapists, and eagerly support this revolutionary new way of connecting therapists and clients.-John Selby, Ph.D.

Michael Aharoni, Ph.D., Founder and Clinical Director of Access to Therapy Network, is an experienced psychotherapist who has created a nationwide delivery system of mental health treatment via video teleconferencing to the military, homebound/disabled, and remote/rural. His motto is: "We come to you when you can't come to us."
Private, Convenient, Safe, and Specialized Therapeutic Access
www.AccessToTherapy.com