An estimated 22 veterans die by suicide each day. For Iraq war veteran Jason Hansman, this staggering statistic is especially personal.
In a HuffPost Live conversation on Wednesday, Hansman remembered a fellow veteran, whom he lost to suicide in 2011.
"It’s very, very difficult to lose someone that you know, someone that you care about, someone that you served in Iraq with," he told host Caroline Modarressay-Tehrani. "It’s really, really, incredibly tough anytime we lose one of our brothers or sisters to suicide."
Hansman said he hopes to see a public outcry for improvement of suicide prevention, particularly for veterans who feel isolated when they return home from war.
“We need the entire system to step up," he said. "We’re not seeing this issue as an issue that’s coming up, as an issue that the American public is saying, 'This is wrong. We have sent these men and women to war and they have come home and now they’re killing themselves at a rate that is unacceptable to us.' I think that is kind of the movement and the motion we need to see."
Watch the full HuffPost Live conversation about National Suicide Prevention Month here.
Have a story about depression that you'd like to share? Email strongertogether@huffingtonpost.com, or give us a call at (860) 348-3376, and you can record your story in your own words. Please be sure to include your name and phone number.
Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
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