A Marine and Iraq War #veteran has spent the last 15 years studying #suicide and #mentalheath within the #military and #veterans’ communities, and his sobering research underlines flaws in a system created to help prevent those at risk

During his second deployment to Iraq with the 1st Marine Regiment Personal Security Detachment in 2008, Seth Allard grew conscious of the alarming #behavior around him.

Allard had deployed earlier in 2005 with 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment to Al Anbar province for operations Steel Curtain and Iron Hammer, but the #behavioral patterns among his fellow infantry and combat units had been peripheral until now.

“I started noticing there was a hesitance among many Marines to seek help with #anger, #anxiety and #behavioralissues,” said Allard, a member of VFW Post 827 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. “I could, as Marines could, tell you unbelievable stories on how we interacted with the #mentalhealthcare system and how it was largely absent, resulting in an almost everyday occurrence of #behavioralproblems.”

A Marine and Iraq War #veteran has spent the last 15 years studying #suicide and #mentalheath within the #military and #veterans’ communities, and his sobering research underlines flaws in a system created to help prevent those at risk

Allard, who deals with #posttraumaticstressdisorder, began ravaging books on the subject and set out to make a difference. His growing awareness about #mentalhealthproblems led to his article, “Adapt and Overcome: A Psychological Battle,” in the Marine Corps Gazette in October 2009, written between missions and a “rare accomplishment” by a corporal at the time, according to Allard.

“I realized Marines were not given the skills, knowledge and proper infrastructure to address their problems and be most successful,” said Allard, who served from 2004 to 2009. “#Mentalhealth can be a good thing, too, not just a topic of disease. I am hoping to change that.”

‘I STUDY THOSE WHO STUDY #SUICIDE’The Iraq War #veteran, whose experience includes being a #military spouse, attended Western Michigan University after his service to earn his bachelor’s degree in history and a master’s in anthropology. He has since spent 15 years working in #socialservices, #mentalhealth and #suicideprevention, as well as researching and applying his experience and insights toward #mentalhealth and #suicideprevention among #veterans and #NativeAmerican communities.

Allard says his approach to preventing #veterans’ #suicide differs from the research used and applied by the #military today. That model, he argues, erases the lived experiences of #veterans through anonymous statistics and infographics. Instead, Allard believes in a philosophy of placing the identity, cultural values and everyday issues that fellow #veterans face at the epicenter of research and collaboration.

As a doctoral #student of social work at Wayne State University in Detroit, Allard published “Cultural Problems Require Cultural Solutions: Partnership between Anthropology and the U.S. Marine Corps to Prevent #Suicide,” in the Marine Corps University Press in March 2022. In the article, Allard provides substantial evidence supporting his views on the proper way to conduct research in hopes of preventing #suicide and enhancing #mentalhealth.

“Everyone in the research and prevention community agrees that we desperately need to solve the problem of #suicide in our #military and #veteran community, and that #suicide is a complex, multifaceted issue,” said Allard, a Dean’s Diversity Fellow and Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Research Scholar. “But this consensus is betrayed by the fact that the research and prevention community, as well as #military and civilian leadership, overall, continue to apply the same approaches to #suicide.”

Allard has worked with at-risk youths and individuals with developmental disabilities. He is well-versed in #suicideprevention programs and the training of community members in #mentalhealth, which gives him a unique perspective against #suicide. He has talked with #military leaders and worked within the VA healthcare system to incorporate his ideas, but they have remained hesitant because Allard believes his ideas challenge the status quo. (Editor’s Note: Allard’s views are his own, and they do not reflect the official views or position of the VA.)

“I do not just study suicides, but I study those who study #suicide,” Allard said. “Academia itself is a culture, and there are two types of researchers involved in public health. Some prioritize publishing results and career advancement, and others are servant intellectuals.

“They prioritize the well-being of the communities that they serve. That conflicts with their career advancement, but they choose community over career.”

#James Donaldson notes:Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes.Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use.Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.  #http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticleFind out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundation website www.yourgiftoflife.orgOrder your copy of James Donaldson's latest book,#CelebratingYourGiftofLife:From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy

www.celebratingyourgiftoflife.com

‘LISTEN TO THEIR EXPERIENCES’Amassing substantial information to support this contention in his published article in Marine Corps University Press last year, Allard believes career-advancing researchers have been dominating the #suicide research in the #military for more than two decades.

“Something is clearly wrong if the #suiciderates remain high,” Allard said. “I am against turning a soldier into a medical experiment. What I see is that my fellow #veterans and service members are not really being heard. I believe in being with #veterans and listening to their experiences with #mentalhealth and the VA. The sad truth is that the research right now dictates how resources are spent, and the wrong research blocks the true prevention.”

Allard added that his approach begins before service members enter the military. He says many enlist with emotional challenges and that Marines, in particular, are at higher risk than those in other #military services. Knowing this, Allard has continued to try and establish communication with the Marine Corps and the Pentagon to implement strategies to help Marines before they begin training to become one.

“Truly preventative measures introduce #mentalhealth the first day,” Allard said. “I believe in evidence-supported training for future Marines in their communities, so they know and understand how to grasp #mentalhealthchallenges before they go through their careers. And this also applies to their transition out of the #military. The #military’s transition assistance program is bureaucratic, and even those working in the system know it is harmful. You cannot learn everything about transitioning back to civilian life in a week.”

In hopes of spreading these views, Allard has reached out to news outlets and #politicians. With an overwhelming saturation of research on #military and #veterans’ #suicide, however, his haste in a dissenting approach to the status quo is what brought him to VFW.

“I know the strong presence VFW has in government and their support of research and #suicideawareness on behalf of #veterans,” Allard said. “That is why I reached out. I hope this can be used to lobby for more effective research.”

Allard plans to continue his aggressive campaign for #suicideprevention, one that prioritizes the culture and lived experiences of those at risk.

“I’m a researcher and #socialworker, but at the end of the day, I am still a Marine infantryman trained to locate, close with, and destroy the enemy,” Allard said. “I keep that mindset close throughout my research, outreach, teaching and advocating for prevention, writing or counseling. I simply have a new objective — preventing #suicide and addressing the problems within #suicide research.”

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