LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — "It was really, really hard and scary," said James Stafford, a veteran.
James Stafford spent about two years serving with the Army National Guard on the ground in Kosovo and Iraq. He did not know the internal battle he would face after he came home.
"I had a lot of denial personally. I felt like I could come back and be James," explained Stafford.
James: the man who loved being athletic but who had injured his spine while overseas.
"I played football in high school, football in college, and always tried to be physically fit, and for me, that right there also affected my mental," explained Stafford. "There are days where it is very difficult for me to stand up straight."
He struggled with suicidal thoughts.
"It may have been four months where I hadn't spoken with anyone," said Stafford.
Then, an Army National Guard Chaplain knocked at Stafford's door to see how he was doing.
"He was like, 'hey what are you doing?' and I was like, 'nothing,'" explained Stafford. "Looking back on that it was like a 'nothing' with all caps, exclamation points."
Their conversation led Stafford to confront his mental health struggles.
"I was in a mental health program," explained Stafford. "I sought help professionally. I was on medication. I was in a psych ward for two weeks, and to say that at first, 'crazy people are there' -- I've never met more normal people in my life."
"We have learned so much from people like James," said Rick Hamp, the team lead for Governor Wolf's challenge to prevent suicide among service members, veterans, and their families. "There is a stigma attached to suicide, and we got to do something to reduce that stigma."
According to national data, veterans are 1.5 times more likely to die by suicide than the general population. Hamp believes that number will likely be higher this year because of COVID-19 and the difficulties it has created. However, he says there is not enough data to say definitively.
"The best thing we can do is education, increase awareness, and get people to feel safe talking about their experiences," said Hamp.
Stafford is thankful for the people who supported him, the chaplain who helped him speak up about his struggles and his then-girlfriend.
"Now, my wife. That in and of itself would be a miracle because I was not in a good place," said Stafford.
He is grateful too for the other avenues of joy he has since discovered: His spin bike, cooking, and gardening, to name a few.
"I felt the door close, but it actually didn't," said Stafford.
Now, Stafford helps veterans and their families. He is a Certified Peer Specialist at Supportive Services for Veteran Families.
Veterans in crisis are encouraged to call the Veterans Crisis Line at 1-800-273-8255. They should press 1. There is also a confidential chat for veterans in crisis on its website.
Hamp believes it is important to help veterans before they're in crisis, though. He said his team is looking at how to address veteran wellness, which he says relates to mental health. Hamp says wellness is made up of the resources around a person - their job, their support system, etc.
In 2019, Governor Wolf's Administration announced the formation of a statewide Suicide Prevention Task Force. From late August through early December 2019, the task force held 10 listening sessions across Pennsylvania. More than 800 Pennsylvanians shared their stories of how suicide and mental health difficulties impact their lives and communities and made recommendations to inform the task force as they developed the statewide plan.
In January 2020, the task force released an initial report, which included key themes heard during the task force listening sessions. The goals and objectives of the task force were refined based on public feedback.
The final Statewide Suicide Prevention Plan lays out the task force’s findings into actionable themes with eight specific goals and objectives:
- Goal 1: Reduce stigma and promote safety, help-seeking, and wellness by increasing suicide awareness and prevention education.
- Goal 2: Promote trauma-informed approaches to support all Pennsylvania residents as part of our suicide prevention efforts by coordinating with Pennsylvania’s Trauma-Informed Care Task Force.
- Goal 3: Provide quality training on the prevention of suicide and management of suicide risk across multiple sectors and settings.
- Goal 4: Promote screening to identify individuals at risk for suicide across sectors, including health care, behavioral health, educational and correctional settings.
- Goal 5: Promote and implement effective clinical and professional practices for assessing and treating those identified as at risk for suicidal behaviors.
- Goal 6: Provide trauma-informed care and support to individuals affected by suicide deaths or attempts to promote healing.
- Goal 7: Promote safety among individuals with identified suicide risk, including firearms safety and awareness of the relationship between opioids and other substances to increased risk of suicide.
- Goal 8: Improve the capacity to utilize data reporting systems relevant to suicide and improve the ability to collect, analyze, and use the information in a timely manner so we can inform further suicide prevention efforts.
Pennsylvania has also launched a campaign called 'Reach out PA: Your Mental Health Matters.' You can read more about the campaign here.
