Seeking the Military Suicide Solution

Visionary thinker and award-winning author of The Iconist, Jamie Mustard joins the show to talk about how to identify the single most important, basic, and compelling theme to emerge from this series and how to move forward in addressing suicide in the military affiliated population

STMSS Hosts Duane France and Shauna Springer reflect on the STMSS Podcast series and discuss some themes that emerged from all of the conversations

Retired Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer, suicide loss survivor, and suicide prevention advocate Chris Jachimiec joins the show to talk about how the STMSS series has impacted his point of view regarding suicide prevention in the military affiliated population

Dr. Bridget Matarazzo, Director for Clinical Services for the Rocky Mountain Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC), joins the show to talk about the Department of Veteran's Affairs' efforts at identifying veterans at risk for suicide and to support clinical professionals working with veterans.

Air Force and Law Enforcement Veteran Michael Sugrue joins the show to talk about his experiences related to suicide both as a former service member and former police officer

National recognized veteran mental health expert and the former assistant deputy undersecretary for patient care services at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Dr. Harold S. Kudler, MD, joins the show to discuss a historical perspective on the public health model and how it can be applied to current suicide prevention efforts.

Suicide loss survivor and suicide prevention advocate Danica Thomas joins the show to discuss her experience of life after suicide and her role in advocacy for suicide prevention efforts.

Military Spouse, Caregiver, and Mother, Amy Taft, joins the show to talk about the need to focus on suicide in children of military and veteran families.

Air Force Captain and nationally recognized experts on Artificial Intelligence, Michael Kanaan, joins the show to discuss the benefits and drawbacks of using AI and machine learning in suicide prevention

Retired Air Force Colonel Robert Swanson joins the show to discuss how he recovered after two non-fatal suicide attempts as a young company grade officer and what he is doing now to help others know that there can be a life worth living after getting help.

Kim Donohue, the Nevada Department of Veteran Services Suicide and Homelessness Prevention Manager, joins the show to talk about the Mayor's and Governor's Challenge to Prevent Veteran Suicide and how these efforts are being applied at the state and local level.

USMC Veteran David Bachmann joins the show to discuss mental health, suicide prevention, and peer support from a combat veteran perspective.

Military historians Dr. Jeff Smith and Dr. Michael Doidge join the show to discuss military and veteran suicide from a historical lens, looking at suicide in the military population over the last two hundred years.

Pennsylvania Congressman and Veteran Scott Perry joins the show to talk about how congress addresses the topic of suicide prevention through legislation, funding, and advocacy

Suicidologist and suicide prevention researcher Dr. Pete Gutierrez joins the show to talk about the effectiveness of community-based suicide prevention efforts

A former Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, USMC Sergeant Major Bryan Battaglia, joins the show to talk about the concept of Total Force Fitness and it's application to suicide prevention

Today's show features two guests from the Wounded Warrior Project: Mike Richardson, the Vice President of Independence Services and Mental Health and Dr. Roger Brooks, the Senior Program Initiatives and Integration Specialist of Mental Health. Together, Mike and Roger talk about how WWP is integrating mental health and wellness into the wide range of support provided by the organization.

President and CEO of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, Joe Bartozzi, joins the show to talk about the NSSF has joined with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention to address lethal means safety in the military affiliated population.

Researcher, practioner, and Deputy Director of the Johnson Depression Center, Dr. Matt Mishkind, joins the show to disucss how to reduce barriers to mental health care through telehealth

Author, Veteran and Military Spouse Michelle Zook joins the show to discuss the need to address suicide in the military and veteran spouse population

Former Marine and author Akshay Nanavati joins the show to talk about his own personal experience with overcoming suicidal thoughts and his recently published book, Fearvana: The Revolutionary Science of How to Turn Fear into Health, Wealth and Happiness

Rick Trimp, the president of Livingworks, one of the world's leading suicide intervention training organizations, joins the show to talk about gatekeeper training and the role of gatekeepers in suicide prevention

Former Navy Admiral and Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Tony Kurta joins the show to talk about suicide prevention policy at the executive level of the Department of Defense.

Active Army Master Sergeant Tom Cruz, a suicide attempt survivor and prevention advocate, joins the show to talk about how his lived experience with suicide has caused him to be a vocal advocate for suicide prevention in the military affiliated community.

Mat Bergendahl, a Clinical Mental Health Counselor and Air Force veteran, joins the show to talk about suicide prevention in the gaming community through the Stack Up Overwatch Program

Dr. Barbara Van Dahlen, Executive Director of the PREVENTS Task Force, joins the show to provide an update on progress made so far, the release of the Roadmap and recommendations, as well as the recently announced national public health awareness campaign.

Sue Freeth, the CEO of the UK-based veteran mental health charity Combat Stress joins the show to give the perspective of suicide prevention efforts in the UK

Captain Matt Kleiman, a commissioned officer in the United States Public Health Service and the Director of the Warrior Resilience and Fitness Division at the National Guard Bureau, joins the show to discuss how the National Guard is implementing suicide prevention efforts across the military.

The CEO of the PsychArmor Institute, Dr. Tina Atherall, joins the show to talk about how education and awareness is an important component to addressing suicide in the military affiliated population.

Dr. Karin Orvis, Director of the Defense Suicide Prevention Office, joins the show to talk about how the Department of Defense is addressing suicide in the currently serving military population

Military Spouse and Executive Director of the Objective Zero Foundation, Betsey Mercado, joins the show to talk about how innovative uses of technology can help prevent suicide in the military affiliated population

Marine Corps Veteran and behavioral medicine researcher Kate Hendricks Thomas, PhD joins the show to talk about how developing resilience and concentrating on peak performance can impact suicide in the military affiliated population

Major General (retired) Mark Graham, the Senior Director, Rutgers UBHC National Call Center, joins the show to talk about his personal experience as a suicide loss survivor and how he and his wife turned that into action by establishing Vets4Warriors, a national peer support network for service members, veterans, and their families

Dr. Keita Franklin, nationally recongized suicide prevention expert and Chief Clinical Officer at Psych Hub, joins the show to discuss how taking a systems approach to suicide prevention can help us impact suicide in the military affiliated population

Air Force Reserve Senior Enlisted Leader Erin Esquer joins the show to talk about her personal expereince in addressing suicide in her miltiary career

Terri Tanielian, senior behavioral scientist at the RAND Corporation and a nationally recognized expert on military and veteran health, joins the show to discuss risk and protective factors related to suicide in the military population.

Military spouse, caregiver, and CEO of The Independence Fund, Sarah Verardo, joins the show to talk about Operation Resiliency, a program that combines military unit reunions with mental health support in order to address suicide.

Cheree Tham, Vice President of Programs and Initiatives for the America's Warrior Partnership, joins the show to discuss a veteran suicide study, Operation Deep Dive

Kim Ruocco, Vice President of Suicide Prevention and Postvention for TAPS, joins the show to talk about the need for postvention for survivors of suicide in the military affiliated population

Dr. Nick Polizzi, Campaign Lead, inTransition Program & Real Warriors Campaign for the Defense Health Agency, joins the show to talk about efforts the DOD are making to address stigma and reducing barriers to wellness to impact suicide in the military affiliated population.

Retired Navy SEAL Commander Mark Divine, Founder / CEO of SEALFIT and the Unbeatable Mind Podcast joins the show to talk about mindfulness, wellness, and suicide in the special operations community

Howard and Jean Somers, parents of California Army National Guard Sergeant Daniel Somers, joins the show to share how their son's death by suicide inspired them to become advocates for suicide prevention reform for members of the military affiliated population.

Dr. Rajeev Ramchand, the Craig Newmark Fellow at the Bob Woodruff Foundation, joins the show to share his insights developed from years of conducting research into suicide in the military affiliated population

Kacie Kelly, Deputy Director of Health and Well-being for the George W. Bush Institute Military Service Initiative, joins the show to talk connecting veteran peer support organizations to effective clinical mental health care in order to provide support for veterans

Combat veteran Kayla Williams, Director of the Military, Veterans, and Society Program at the Center for a New American Security, joins the show to talk about suicide prevention from both her lived experience and her work as a veteran advocate

Joe Chenelly, National Executive Director, AMVETS, joins the show to talk about how veteran service organizations play a critical role in addressing suicide in the military affiliated population

Dr. Eugene Lipov, a board certified anesthesiologist, joins the show to talk about how addressing PTSD with a revolutionary new application can reduce misery that can lead to suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

Cicely Burrows-McElwain, the Senior Public Health Advisor, Military and Veteran Affairs Liaison, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), joins the show to talk about national efforts to support community-based interventions to address suicide in the military affiliated population.

Dr. Matt Miller, Acting Director, Suicide Prevention Program, Department of Veterans Affairs, joins the show to talk the VA's efforts to impact suicide in the veteran community

Dr. Craig Bryan, Executive Director of the National Center for Veterans Studies, joins the show to talk about his research into effective methods of suicide prevention and intervention

Dr. Barbara Van Dahlen, Executive Director of the President's Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of Suicide (PREVENTS) Task Force, joins the show to talk about how the Task Force is developing an action plan to impact suicide in the military population