Why is the suicide rate among female troops MUCH higher than their male counterparts?

I wish I knew the answer, LTC Jason Strickland, but I don't. All I can tell you is about my own experience down-range. I struggled greatly on two different fronts: at work and off work.

At work, I realized that I had less worth than the males because their training always took precedence over mine, even though we held the same rank and job and some of them were newer to the unit. Eventually, I was told by one NCO (who has since ETSed) that I could never be a good door gunner because I'm a female, and he went to extraordinary lengths to shut me out. My mood hit rock bottom because I felt that deployment was the be-all and end-all of my becoming a Soldier, and here it turned out that I was of no value to the Army. I tried to correct myself by imagining how suicide would affect my family back home, but I always found a way to rationalize that the insurance money and death gratuity ($550 thousand combined) would eventually assuage their grief and they'd be better off. Once I hit that point, the only thing that saved me was my Platoon Sergeant. I didn't even tell him that anything was wrong, as he was 3 levels above me in my NCO support channel, but at several critical moments he said just the right thing that kept me going.

Off work, the only people I felt safe around were the ones in my own company, but since they were males, they were quartered in a different part of the camp. I was housed near other units, and some local nationals, and I experienced several events that affected me of which I don't speak.

Down-range, my problems seemed much bigger than they really were. Once I returned to the States, I realized that none of them were as big a deal as they seemed down-range. In the end, it was just one Senior NCO (SFC Rhinehart) who kept me from becoming another statistic.

Access to firearms. Women are less likely to own firearms and tend to use overdose to attempt suicide when stateside but when deployed they have access to firearms so they "catch up" to men, who use firearms as their primary method. Ease of access to means is the strongest determinant of death by suicide. It's one of the biggest challenges for suicide prevention down range.

LTC Jason Strickland I wish I knew the answers here. It is difficult for me to understand exactly what would drive an individual to suicide. I have always tried to maintain a very different attitude in that I will never allow myself to be a victim. Not that I've never been victimized, but I will not allow myself to remain in that mindset. And I always try to find the positive in any situation.

We are all different in how we handle various circumstances. Some of us learn ways to cope with stress, trauma and hardships that other's do not or cannot learn. I was called names, insulted and treated badly as a child and teen, so I learned how to cope with those things early on. My parents didn't hold my hand and comfort me when I was hurt by someone else's words, instead they told me I didn't need that person if they were going to treat me that way. I resented them at the time, but it did give me strength to believe in myself.

I wouldn't say I'm necessarily a strong-minded individual, only that I've learned throughout life that the more I focus my energies on other people, the more my own problems seem petty, so there is no point in dwelling on them or allowing them to consume me. I'm not saying I don't get down once in awhile, I just don't let it take over my life. I have had to learn to deal with a hormonal deficiency that began in my late 30's and early 40's that would throw me into depression and paranoia for about 3-4 days a month. It was suffocating, but I went to a doctor and got medical attention for awhile. Later I found a change in my diet could greatly reduce the impact of these days. Now, I hardly notice it. The point is, if something is wrong, I don't just let it take over, I seek a solution. I do research, I talk to people and I try to find answers. I hate the word "NO" and I don't believe in "Just because".

More recently, one of the things that helps me is a quote by Mother Teresa. Whenever I feel sorry for myself or feel like I didn't get the recognition I thought I deserved, I remember her words and it reminds me.....well, quite frankly, its NOT all about me.

I refuse to let other people tell me what I should think of myself. They can insult me or belittle me all they want, but I don't have to believe them. It might hurt for a moment, but then I get up, dust myself off, and seek an opportunity to bring a little light into someone else's life. When I put a smile on someone else's face, it makes me happy.

OK, so if you want to know what Mother Teresa said, here are her words:
People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.
― Mother Teresa

These are words I try to live by.