WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 After finishing a tour in Afghanistan in 2013, Dionne Williamson felt emotionally numb. More warning signs appeared during several years of subsequent overseas postings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s like I lost me somewhere,\u201d said Williamson, a Navy lieutenant commander who experienced disorientation, depression, memory loss and chronic exhaustion. \u201cI went to my captain and said, \u2018Sir, I need help. Something\u2019s wrong.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As the Pentagon seeks to confront\u00a0spiraling suicide rates in the military ranks, Williamson\u2019s experiences shine a light on the realities for service members seeking mental health help. For most, simply acknowledging their difficulties can be intimidating. And what comes next can be frustrating and dispiriting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Williamson, 46, eventually found stability through a monthlong hospitalization and a therapeutic program that incorporates horseback riding. But she had to fight for years to get the help she needed. \u201cIt\u2019s a wonder how I made it through,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In March, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the creation of an independent committee to review the military\u2019s mental health and suicide prevention programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Defense Department data, suicides among active-duty service members increased by more than 40% between 2015 and 2020. The numbers jumped by 15% in 2020 alone. In longtime suicide hotspot postings such as Alaska \u2013 service members and their families contend with extreme isolation and a harsh climate \u2013 the rate has doubled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 2021\u00a0study by the Cost of War Project\u00a0concluded that since 9\/11, four times as many service members and veterans have died by suicide as have perished in combat. The study detailed stress factors particular to military life: \u201chigh exposure to trauma \u2014 mental, physical, moral, and sexual \u2014 stress and burnout, the influence of the military\u2019s hegemonic masculine culture, continued access to guns, and the difficulty of reintegrating into civilian life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Pentagon did not respond to repeated requests for comment. But Austin has publicly acknowledged that the Pentagon\u2019s current mental health offerings \u2014 including a Defense Suicide Prevention Office established in 2011 \u2014 have proven insufficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is imperative that we take care of all our teammates and continue to reinforce that mental health and suicide prevention remain a key priority,\u201d Austin wrote in March. \u201cClearly we have more work to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last year the Army issued fresh guidelines to its commanders on how to handle mental health issues in the ranks,\u00a0complete with briefing slides and a script. But daunting long-term challenges remain. Many soldiers fear the stigma of admitting to mental health issues within the internal military culture of self-sufficiency. And those who seek help often find that stigma is not only real, but compounded by bureaucratic obstacles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Much like the issue of\u00a0food insecurity in military families, a network of military-adjacent charitable organizations has tried to fill the gaps with a variety of programs and outreach efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some are purely recreational, such as an annual fishing tournament in Alaska designed to provide fresh air and socialization for service members. Others are more focused on self-care, like an Armed Services YMCA program that offers free childcare so that military parents can attend therapy sessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The situation in Alaska is particularly dire. In January, after a string of suicides, Command Sgt. Maj. Phil Blaisdell addressed his soldiers in an\u00a0emotional Instagram post. \u201cWhen did suicide become the answer,\u201d he asked. \u201cPlease send me a DM if you need something. Please \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said that while posting to Alaska can be a dream for some service members, it\u2019s a solitary nightmare for others that needs to be addressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got to be paying attention to this when you see the statistics jump as they are,\u201d Murkowski said. \u201cRight now, you\u2019ve got everybody. You\u2019ve got the Joint Chiefs looking at Alaska and saying, \u2018Holy smokes, what\u2019s going on up there?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The stresses of an Alaska posting are compounded by a shortage of on-the-ground therapists. During a visit to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska earlier this year, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth heard from base health care workers who say they are understaffed, burned out and can\u2019t see patients on a timely basis. If a soldier seeks help, they often have to wait weeks for an appointment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have people who need our services and we can\u2019t get to them,\u201d one longtime counselor told Wormuth during a meeting. \u201cWe need staff and until we get them, we will continue to have soldiers die.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The annual\u00a0Combat Fishing Tournament\u00a0in Seward, Alaska, was formed to \u201cget the kids out of the barracks, get them off the base for the day and get them out of their heads,\u201d said co-founder Keith Manternach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The tournament, which was begun in 2007 and now involves more than 300 service members, includes a day of deep-water fishing followed by a celebratory banquet with prizes for the largest catch, smallest catch and the person who gets the sickest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think there\u2019s a huge element of mental health to it,\u201d Manternach said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s not just in Alaska.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sgt. Antonio Rivera, an 18-year veteran who completed three tours in Iraq and a year at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, freely acknowledges that he has serious PTSD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know that I need help. There\u2019s signs and I\u2019ve waited long enough,\u201d said Rivera, 48, who is assigned to Fort Hood in Texas. \u201cI don\u2019t want my children to suffer because of me not going to get help.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He\u2019s doing yoga, but says he needs more. He\u2019s reluctant to seek help inside the military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPersonally I\u2019d feel more comfortable being able to talk to someone outside,\u201d he said. \u201cIt would allow me to open up a lot more without having to be worried about how it\u2019s going to affect my career.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Others who speak up say it\u2019s a struggle to get assistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the on-base presence of \u201ctons of briefings and brochures on suicide and PTSD,\u201d Williamson said she found herself fighting for years to get time off and therapy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Eventually, she entered a monthlong in-patient program in Arizona. When she returned, a therapist recommended equine-assisted therapy, which proved to be a breakthrough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now Williamson is a regular at the Cloverleaf Equine Center in Clifton, Virginia, where riding sessions can be combined with a variety of therapeutic practices and exercises. Working with horses has long been used as a form for therapy for people with physical or mental disabilities and children diagnosed with autism. But in recent years, it has been embraced for helping service members with anxiety and PTSD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn order to be able to work with horses, you need to be able to regulate your emotions. They communicate through body language and energy,\u201d said Shelby Morrison, Cloverleaf\u2019s communications director. \u201cThey respond to energies around them. They respond to negativity, positivity, anxiety, excitement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Military clients, Morrison said, come with \u201ca lot of anxiety, depression, PTSD. \u2026 We use the horse to get them out of their triggers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Williamson, the regular riding sessions have helped stabilize her. She still struggles, and she said her long campaign for treatment has damaged her relationship with multiple superior officers. She\u2019s currently on limited duty and isn\u2019t sure if she\u2019ll retire when she hits her 20-year anniversary in March.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nevertheless, she says, the equine therapy has helped her feel optimistic for the first time in recent memory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNow even if I can\u2019t get out of bed, I make sure to come here,\u201d she said. \u201cIf I didn\u2019t come here, I don\u2019t know where I would even be.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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