For many veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, the challenges of military service don’t stop once they’ve returned home. They reenter civilian life with trauma that affects their mental health and their ability to hold down a job. All Points North, a mind-body health company, surveyed 1,000 veterans on the state of their mental health. Key findings of APN’s 2022 report include:
- 43% of veterans experience more mental health struggles after leaving military service than when they were in military service. Nearly a third of veterans say the mental health struggles they face in day-to-day civilian life are worse than what they experienced in combat, and 45% do not believe their mental health will improve in the next year.
- 69% of veterans say they struggle with holding down a job or finding one due to mental health issues. Even those who do have a job struggle: 56% say their mental health impacts their relationships at work. Some 11% say they are reluctant to get help for fear of being fired.
- 46% of veterans consume substances once a week to cope with civilian life, while 17% say they fear they’ll lose their medical or disability benefits if they seek help.
“Many veterans suffer in silence because of the stigma surrounding mental health, and the complexities of VA benefits and public healthcare make an unbearable situation almost impossible to navigate,” Noah Nordheimer, CEO of All Points North, writes in the report.
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