When Was the Last Time You Assessed the Safety of Your Home?

2023-09-29T13:23:28-04:00

I’ve spent most of my career working directly with people in crisis. For people in a substance use and/or suicide crisis- one of the most common topics we discussed was access to firearms and other lethal means.

I fully appreciate that firearms are a core part of the military’s ability to provide the national defense we all treasure and therefore are part of the culture of military and veteran communities. I have also witnessed how suicidal thoughts can come fast and strong - and pass: most people who experience these thoughts don’t act on the thoughts and survive. Time and space between those thoughts and having quick access to lethal means, especially firearms, has been the difference between life and death for many.

One person I worked with asked his buddy to come over and temporarily store his firearms when he was struggling - we both thought it saved his life. Another person shared how she wished she knew that her loved one who died by suicide had owned firearms so she could have offered to help or temporarily store their firearms. I’ve had countless discussions with people in the midst of emotional, physical and/or spiritual pain. My goal was to instill hope, assess their crisis, encourage evidence-based treatments and establish a safety plan they could use at home and share with their loved ones. But how could we take actions before a crisis hits a breaking point?

I always felt that having a home safety plan was essential to not only protect families from an outside threat, but also protect ourselves and our families from a more likely threat - a crisis within our homes.

Assuring that your family and home is protected is the top reason service members, Veterans and civilians, cite for owning firearms (https://rly.pt/ReasonsforOwningFirearms). Most often gun owners are concerned about a potential outside threat and want to have quick access to firearms (https://rly.pt/PersonalFirearmsStorage). Establishing a home safety plan is essential for any gun owner to assure that their firearms are securely stored and not at risk of unauthorized access. Creating and sharing a home safety plan with friends and family can also assure that gun owners are protecting their homes from in-home threats including accidental access by kids to prevent injury and even suicide.

Firearms are the leading cause of death for children and youth (https://rly.pt/FirearmsInjuries) and the leading cause of firearm related deaths in the United States is suicide (https://rly.pt/FirearmsDeaths). There is disproportionate suicide risk for specific people including those living in a home with firearms , service members, Veterans, and their families (https://rly.pt/HandgunOwnershipandSuicide).

We need all gun owners to assess and reassess through establishing a home safety plan when, where, and how their firearms and any other potentially lethal means such as medications - over the counter and prescriptions - alcohol and other substances, or anything someone has thought about using to hurt themselves with in the past - are safely and securely stored.

Securely storing firearms outside the home is the strategy that can provide the most protection against the cunning problem of suicide. Understanding the options that your local and state laws (https://rly.pt/StateFirearmsLaws) is important in designing or writing your home safety plan that includes the option of temporarily securing your firearms with a trusted buddy, relative or at a local gun shop or shooting range is an important part of any home safety plan.

When storing in your home, securely storing unloaded firearms with ammunition stored securely and separately is the next best option for decreasing the risk of suicide. Storage options that have a biometric sensor assures that no one else can access the firearm such as children and youth.

Temporary, voluntary out of home storage can be important during certain times of the year, here are some examples:

1. When you or someone in your home is struggling with thoughts of suicide or have a history of a suicide attempt.

2. When you or someone in your home is using alcohol, marijuana, opioids and/or other substances – especially when there has been an increase in substance use or relapse after sobriety.

3. When you or someone in your home has recently been in the Emergency Room, inpatient treatment center or hospital.

4. When you have kids and young people in your home.

5. After a diagnosis of cancer or other new major medical condition for your or someone in your home.
6. Before an anniversary of a loss or other traumatic event.

Sharing your home safety plan with trusted loved ones and friends is important. Placing the “988 and Press 1 for Veterans 24/7" crisis hotline visibly in your home, encouraging help seeking for substance use, emotional, mental health and other needs are all additional steps to consider in your home safety plan.

Have you already created a home safety plan? Share more steps or considerations in the comments below.

*If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call 988 anytime 24/7. Service members, National Guard members, Reservists, Veterans and their families should dial 988 and Press 1 to connect to the Military and Veteran Crisis Line.

More information is available at: veteranscrisisline.net

Firearm ownership among American veterans: findings from the 2015 National Firearm Survey -...

The current study is the first to provide detailed, nationally representative information about firearm ownership among U.S. veterans. Better understanding firearm ownership among veterans can usefully inform ongoing suicide prevention efforts aiming to facilitate lethal means safety among vulnerabl …

Response by CPT David Gowel made Sep 29 at 2023 2:06 PM

2023-09-29T14:06:25-04:00

I saw this article from a few weeks ago about a 1 year old's death because his dad left a loaded weapon out. Tragic stuff like this happens way too much https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/cobb-county-1-year-old-toddler-found-shot

1-year-old boy accidentally shoots self at home; father charged

A one-year-old boy is dead after accidentally shooting himself in the head. Theboy's father, is now in jail being held without bond.

Response by Maj Robert Thornton made Sep 29 at 2023 2:21 PM

2023-09-29T14:21:03-04:00

In my home the only people I worry about accessing my firearms are my grand kids. My handguns are stored loaded in my bedside table safe and in my large gun safe. My long guns and ammo are in the large safe. If there is a firearm out of the bedside safe when the grands are around, it is on my person.
My wife doesn’t even know the combinations to the safes.

Response by SSgt Richard Kensinger made Sep 29 at 2023 2:31 PM

2023-09-29T14:31:19-04:00

This is particularly the case for male suicide.
Rich

Response by MSgt Norlan Maravich made Sep 29 at 2023 3:02 PM

2023-09-29T15:02:04-04:00

How I wish Rallypoint have a bookmark feature so that wonderful posts such as this can easily be saved. And if it's not too much to ask maybe a reshare button as well.

Response by SGT Ruben Lozada made Sep 29 at 2023 5:16 PM

2023-09-29T17:16:02-04:00

Good afternoon Aimee Johnson. Excellent post. Thank You for sharing this on RP. I live an apartment and keep My firearm and ammo locked up. I only have access to it and live with two other adults as well.

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 29 at 2023 7:59 PM

2023-09-29T19:59:58-04:00

Kinda hard to guarantee the firearm’s availability during a home invasion if it’s locked up…

Response by A1C Medrick "Rick" DeVaney made Sep 29 at 2023 8:22 PM

2023-09-29T20:22:07-04:00

As ODD As This May Seem, I Have Made It A Point, All Of My Adult Life,
To See Items As "Things" And I Have No Problem With Losing Them....
It Boils Down To Attitude; Because "Things" To Me, Have NO Value ...
Other That Ones Which May Be Sentimental.
And I Have But 2: My Dog Tags & Drawings A Friend Did For Me. .. Others? ~ ZERO ~

Response by CPL Douglas Chrysler made Sep 29 at 2023 9:52 PM

2023-09-29T21:52:27-04:00

I'm with Maj Robert Thornton, if my firearms aren't in the safe then I'm carrying it. I don't remember anyone with a safe when I was a kid. People hid their guns in the house somewhere, but other than being in a locked house very few took extra precautions. Even me. I carried a rifle in my pickup on the rack in the back window. Today I used a rifle to properly install the rack in my favorite pickup but have never had one on it since.

Response by MAJ Byron Oyler made Sep 30 at 2023 7:32 PM

2023-09-30T19:32:27-04:00

If there was true interest in stopping veteran suicides then there would be talk about other methods and not just firearms. No one talks about securing medications when someone is having a bad day and vets are prescribed meds that can kill them peacefully all the time without friends and family even knowing but do we talk about that, no. You secure a firearm and the person wanting to end their life can just go buy another. Secure prescription meds you cannot just go get more but do we talk about these, no. Lets be honest here, it is not about suicide but control.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 1 at 2023 4:09 PM

2023-10-01T16:09:00-04:00

Let me be rather Blunt here. You and others are worried about someone using a firearm to end their life. What you should be worried about is why were you not able to avert that decision of the individual you are treating to take their life. Where did you fail them? What actions should you have taken but didn't.
When an individual takes their life the treating professionals will blame the method instead of their failure to treat the individual to the point that they do not think about taking their life.

If you listen to your fellow vets and pay attention to what they are saying you will start to understand. They come to you for help. You are their last chance and if professionals who treat these folks like a drive thru costumer at a fast food restaurant then you have lost them.

Lets Talk VA.
Solving the individuals issues requires hard work and that includes building a relationship where the Veteran actually feels that their provider/s care for them and if you reach this level with a patient then the last thing they will do is do something stupid like take their life. But what happens in the VA is that it is unwilling to work with the veteran to solve the issues so they drug the veteran then are shocked when they take their life. It may take some veterans an hour or more to finally say something but their appointment is over before they find the courage to speak and it can be too late by then. The VA has to put an end to this drive through mentality when they are treating veterans. There needs to be empathy and understanding not this horrible way they treat their veterans today.

Response by LCpl Michael Cappello made Oct 6 at 2023 5:13 PM

2023-10-06T17:13:58-04:00

The "Safety" of my home is ALWAYS under scrutiny. Every time I purchase newer and better weapons. Preparedness for accidents, hazards and acts of God is 100%. The only events with extremely low probability of survival are any and all unauthorized entries to my LZ. They have a projected ZERO percent survivability rate. All the Thug Bunnies are invited to Come Git Some.

Response by 1LT Larry Bass made Nov 1 at 2023 6:45 AM

2023-11-01T06:45:29-04:00

Securing weapons, prescription drugs, and/or any other potentially harmful thing is just plain common sense - which is uncommon these days. When it comes to the subject of psychology, psychiatry, counseling, and/or otherwise helping someone who is struggling with violent or harmful thoughts/attitudes, YOUR responsibility as a counselor is to first: get yourself right with your Creator; upgrade your education portfolio to include training as an IABC counselor (http://www.IABC.net). Your patients NEED to understand that their Creator loves them. The spirit world is REAL. Note Ephesians 6:12: "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places." Your patients need a relationship with their Creator so that they can receive and rely on His power to resist evil. What good is it to simply survive in this evil world until we die (we all die, because the wages of sin is death), if we then end up in hell because we rejected the God who created & loves us? Your article makes some reasonable points. However, you should also point out the main issue: mankind has a sin problem that must be dealt with.

www.IABC.net).

Response by A1C Medrick "Rick" DeVaney made Jan 20 at 2024 6:19 AM

2024-01-20T06:19:35-05:00

Never Felt The Need For Having Fire Arms In The House, Nor Have I Locked My Doors.
One Day The Police Showed Up At My Door, And This Is How I Explained It To Them:
If Someone Wants Into My House, They WILL Break In. ANYONE Can Easily Break Into A House;
In MY This House, Getting OUT Is Where Their Problem Begins And Ends.