Marine recruits learn to battle suicide

Sean Masterson / For The Times
FRONT LINES: Marines engage in a “guided discussion” with their drill instructor, Staff Sgt. Nicholas Romer.

Marine recruits learn to battle suicide
As deaths increase, drill instructors and chaplains are teaching warning signs and prevention strategies.
By Tony Perry, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
July 20, 2008
SAN DIEGO -- The basic rule for Marine boot camp is simple: Keep your mouth shut and mind your own business.

But it's different when the subject is suicide.

Drill instructors encourage recruits to share their feelings in "guided discussions" and tell them to watch out for, and promptly report, warning signs in their buddies.

The suicide rate in the active-duty Marine Corps was 16.5 per 100,000 in 2007 -- below both the active-duty Army and a similar demographic in the civilian population. But it had jumped from 12.9 in 2006.

In the first six months of this year, 25 Marines committed suicide, the most in that period of time since such records began to be kept several years ago. If that trend persists, 2008 could prove the worst year for Marine suicides since at least the beginning of the war in Afghanistan.

"Current prevention strategies are being evaluated and developed to respond to this increase and the ongoing wartime demands and associated stressors confronting Marines," said Navy Cmdr. Aaron Werbel, manager of the Marine Corps' suicide prevention program.

"Training is being conducted for Marines, leaders, counselors, chaplains, family members and frontline installation staff who have routine contact with young Marines," he said.

In April, representatives of all the military branches attended a weeklong conference here to hear from civilian experts and discuss ways to improve prevention programs.

The Marine Corps provides advanced training in suicide prevention for chaplains, corpsmen, mental health specialists and career counselors.

But the first line of defense against suicide remains the young Marine who is in the best position to notice changes in a buddy. Learning how to recognize warning signs is a key element of training, which begins at boot camp and is reinforced later, particularly as Marines prepare to deploy.

In 2007, of the 33 Marines listed as suicides, most were under 24. Two-thirds used firearms. The others hanged themselves or took poison.

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