{"id":25257,"date":"2021-08-31T16:48:43","date_gmt":"2021-08-31T16:48:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/uncategorized\/2021\/08\/31\/more-vets-reaching-out-for-crisis-line-help-amid-afghanistan-collapse\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T06:10:57","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T06:10:57","slug":"more-vets-reaching-out-for-crisis-line-help-amid-afghanistan-collapse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/marinecorpstimes\/veterans\/2021\/08\/31\/more-vets-reaching-out-for-crisis-line-help-amid-afghanistan-collapse\/","title":{"rendered":"More vets reaching out for crisis line help amid Afghanistan collapse"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Calls and texts to the Veterans Crisis Line have increased significantly amid the end of U.S. operations in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/newsletters\/breaking-news-alert\/2021\/08\/30\/its-official-the-us-has-no-boots-on-the-ground-in-afghanistan\/\" target=\"_blank\">Afghanistan<\/a> in recent weeks. But <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marinecorpstimes.com\/flashpoints\/afghanistan\/2021\/08\/16\/mental-health-resources-are-available-for-veterans-unsettled-by-afghanistan-news\/?contentQuery=%7B%22section%22%3A%22%2Fhome%22%2C%22from%22%3A75%2C%22size%22%3A10%2C%22exclude%22%3A%22%2Fnews%2Fpentagon-congress%22%7D&#038;contentFeatureId=f0fMKJaWTNAG78a\" target=\"_blank\">Veterans Affairs<\/a> officials say that\u2019s good news, not bad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe more that we can do to normalize discussions about crisis and about suicide and how it\u2019s okay to reach out for help, the better,\u201d said Dr. Lisa Kearney, director of crisis line operations. \u201cI\u2019m thankful for it, hopefully we can \u2026 make it easier for folks to reach us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Calls to the crisis line jumped about 7 percent over the last three weeks compared to August 2020. Online chats with crisis line staff are up almost 40 percent. Texts to the emergency service are up about 98 percent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That time frame coincides with international headlines chronicling the fall of the democratic government in Afghanistan, the return of Taliban rule and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/flashpoints\/afghanistan\/2021\/08\/30\/evacuee-numbers-dwindle-as-us-heads-into-final-day-of-boots-on-the-ground-in-afghanistan\/\" target=\"_blank\">chaotic end to U.S. military operations<\/a> there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, Dr. Matthew Miller, National Director of VA\u2019s Suicide Prevention Program, cautioned against assumptions that all of the increase is from veterans of the recent wars traumatized directly by the events overseas.<\/p>\n\n\n<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link smg-interstitial-link--fallback wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.marinecorpstimes.com\/flashpoints\/afghanistan\/2021\/08\/16\/mental-health-resources-are-available-for-veterans-unsettled-by-afghanistan-news\/?contentQuery=%7B%22section%22%3A%22%2Fhome%22%2C%22from%22%3A75%2C%22size%22%3A10%2C%22exclude%22%3A%22%2Fnews%2Fpentagon-congress%22%7D&#038;contentFeatureId=f0fMKJaWTNAG78a\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__fallback-link\">Mental health resources are available for veterans unsettled by Afghanistan news<\/a><\/aside>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI can\u2019t think of anything in suicide prevention that can be explained by one thing or one factor,\u201d he said in a roundtable with reporters on Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Miller noted that along with the situation in Afghanistan, veterans across the country have been inundated with reminders of the upcoming anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, faced a host of late-summer natural disasters in various locations, and seen pandemic restrictions re-emerge as coronavirus case numbers increase again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In several cases, Miller said, Vietnam-era veterans have reached out to the crisis line in recent weeks to talk about their own wartime traumas and concerns, spurred on by the violence and confusion in Afghanistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Media sharing of the crisis line information has also been up in response to the recent headlines, which in turn could be encouraging more individuals to seek help for issues they previously have kept to themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And Miller said that staffers typically see increases in anxiety and mental health challenges at the start of fall, some of which may be aggravated this year by the other factors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Regardless of the reasons, VA officials said they\u2019re encouraged by the increased use of the service and not concerned.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2021\/08\/30\/its-official-the-us-has-no-boots-on-the-ground-in-afghanistan\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"197\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AFghanBye.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">It\u2019s official: The US has no boots on the ground in Afghanistan<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">A total of 132,000 civilians were evacuated since late July.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEvery call is worthwhile, every call is exactly what we are there for,\u201d Miller said. \u201cWe find when veterans call us and talk with us, or engage with us in any way, it breaks down a wall in terms of stigma and in terms of barriers to care they may perceive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAnd when those walls are broken down, then they are more likely to contact us the next time they are in a crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An average of about 18 veterans-a-day die by suicide, a figure that has held steady in recent years despite increased efforts to address mental health care within the veteran community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Numerous public figures and public awareness campaigns in recent years have quoted the figure of \u201c20-a-day\u201d in reference to veterans suicide, but VA officials have worked to clarify that estimate also includes figures for active-duty troops, guardsmen and reservists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The crisis line was established in 2007 to help deal with the problem. Individuals can call anonymously or provide personal information to see what specific medical or other benefits they may be eligible to receive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><i>Veterans experiencing a mental health emergency can contact the Veteran Crisis Line at 1-800-273-8255 and select option 1 for a VA staffer. Veterans, troops or their family members can also text 838255 or visit <\/i><a href=\"http:\/\/veteranscrisisline.net\/\" target=\"_blank\"><i>VeteransCrisisLine.net<\/i><\/a><i> for chat services.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>VA staffers said they&#8217;re encouraged by the increased outreach, and not fearful that it means a sudden increase in mental health challenges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":54043,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":19,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[101,23,93,12,25,67,19],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3226],"class_list":["post-25257","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-home","category-middle-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-pentagon-congress","category-veterans"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"GJFWLN7QDJCFVL3ZSPEAT3WTRE","arc_canonical_url":"\/veterans\/2021\/08\/31\/more-vets-reaching-out-for-crisis-line-help-amid-afghanistan-collapse\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented 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