A behavioral health disorder can affect a person's thoughts, feelings, behavior, or mood and impacts quality of life and day-to-day living.
Factors and stressors associated with behavioral health conditions include:
- Exposure to trauma (combat)
- Abuse/neglect (domestic violence)
- Physical health issues (pain)
- Social health issues (financial trouble
or legal disputes) - Relationship distress (divorce/breakup)
- Change of circumstance (permanent change of station (PCS)
- Genetics (which cannot be changed)
- Diet (nutrition)
- Environment (poor air quality and noisy surroundings)
Learning to manage feelings, frame thoughts, regulate behaviors, and communicate with others all contribute to a person's behavioral health daily functioning and sense of wellness. When needed, behavioral health care is available to assist with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the emotional, psychological, and social aspects of our overall health.
Research on military populations indicates that
stigma often prevents Service Members from initiating behavioral health
care. Service Members' concerns about the potential negative impacts on their careers or work environments are the most frequently cited barriers to behavioral health care.
Leaders have an important role in building personal and unit readiness and resilience.
Tips to creating an environment that promotes behavioral health and wellness includes:
- Promoting healthy social connectedness by encouraging a buddy system and involvement in social gatherings.
- Proactively engaging in open dialogue about behavioral health and community resources to help Service Members feel more comfortable to reach out to leadership and seek help. For example, incorporate discussions about suicide prevention, coping skills, and stress management into the training calendar.
- Being familiar with crisis and help-seeking resources both in military and civilian healthcare and community settings.
- Sharing stories of resilience and promoting help-seeking and positive coping skills.
- Engaging in community programs such as Chaplain services, Army Community Services, and peer support programs such as Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers (BOSS).
- Foster communication and engagement with Service Members during periods of transition.
This can include military separation, retirement, or relocating during PCS
season. PCS moves can be both exciting and stressful. To help optimize the health and well-being of Service Members and their families during a relocation, leaders can promote healthy
social connection through sponsorship programs and family readiness groups.
Overall, enhancing care entails the individual, their support network (family, friends, and colleagues), and the broader community understanding that behavioral health is an element to overall health and that seeking care occurs beyond the clinical setting.
The 2022 Health of the Force Report, describes key indicators that impact readiness and Soldier well-being. The Health of the Force suite of products provides tools to improve performance and reduce illness and injury.
Mobile Resources
https://mobile.health.mil/ 
Behavioral Health Resources
If you or someone you know is in crisis, dial 988 for 24/7 access to free and confidential support and resources through the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or call the Military Crisis Line for confidential support at 1-800- 273-TALK (8255) and Press 1.
Community Resource Guides
Spotlight on Behavioral Health Articles
- September 2024: DHA-Public Health Army Suicide Study Emphasizes Firearm Storage, Safety Policies, as Effective Strategies in Suicide Prevention The Department of Defense and military services support Suicide Prevention Month, every September, as a way of drawing attention to the resources available to prevent service member suicides. As part of their larger suicide prevention efforts, the DOD and services also track “all cause" mortality data, including suicide, as a way of identifying and understanding the occupational exposures that increase risk of premature death.
- September 2024: Suicide Prevention Starts with Reexamining Coping Skills Suicide is seldom attributed to a single circumstance or event. Death by suicide tends to result from a combination of individual, interpersonal, community and societal factors and is multifaceted, with relationship problems, workplace difficulties, administrative/legal concerns and financial difficulties being among the top stressors for Service members. Building coping skills to manage the stressors that contribute to suicidal thoughts, and preventing harmful thoughts from resulting in harmful behaviors, are essential to preventing suicide. The three recommended psychotherapies are equally effective; therefore, selecting a treatment often depends on aspects of the treatment, provider training and the specific needs of the individual.
- June 2024: Commentary: Understanding PTSD, Getting Effective Treatment Post-traumatic stress disorder, known as PTSD, is a mental health disorder that may develop following a traumatic event in which a person is exposed to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence. PTSD is a concern among active duty service members and is the fourth-leading reason for a temporary behavioral health profile. PTSD can be treated, and symptoms can be reduced. The three specific trauma-focused psychotherapies recommended by the DOD and VA to treat PTSD: Prolonged Exposure (PE),Cognitive processing therapy (CPT), and Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR).
- January 2024: Is it Just Post-Holiday Blues or is it More Serious? Many people experience the joy and cheer during the holiday season; however, for some people it can be a time of loneliness, sadness and stress. Mild feelings of gloominess, stress and tiredness are common during or right after the winter holidays. These feelings are sometimes referred to as the “holiday blues" or “winter blues." However, if more severe symptoms exist, seasonal affective disorder, a form of clinical depression known as SAD, may be present. Holiday blues and winter SAD are different, mainly because holiday blues feelings are temporary and typically go away when the holiday season ends. SAD, or winter depression, often begins in the fall but continues through January and can last until spring.
- September 2023: Preventing suicide through social connectedness Suicide is a significant public health issue that starts before a person is in crisis. Increased positive relationships serve as a protective factor against both suicidal thoughts and behaviors and contribute to decreased levels of social isolation and loneliness. Leadership Engagement and community connections play a critical role in suicide prevention by serving as a barrier for the negative impact of risk factors in a persons' life. Being connected to others, particularly during periods of stress, helps an individual to not feel alone and provides them access to a trusted network that can provide support and assistance.
- June 2023: How to minimize service members, family stress during PCS season The process of relocating during the PCS season can induce stress in response to changes to living arrangements, employment, schools, routines, social activities and new support networks. This can yield both short-term effects on the well-being of service members and families and long-term effects on the broader Army mission of ready and retained Soldiers. The process of identifying, addressing, and preventing challenges associated with PCS moves is critical to optimizing the health and well-being of all service members and their families. To help ease the stress of relocating, helpful tips include maintaining open communication; using visual reminders, such as a calendar, to help manage key tasks, responsibilities, and expectations for moving; getting all family members involved in the moving process; and using behavioral health and community resources.
- May 2023: Preparing children for PCS season For military children, PCS moves often entails starting a new school, building new friendships, and finding new social activities. During this transition, there is generally an increase in stress for parents as well as children. There are helpful strategies to limit stress and foster positive benefits in order to build family resilience and make the most of the moving experience, to include maintaining open communication, active listening, practicing calming techniques, and assigning special roles throughout the moving process. These helpful strategies limit stress and foster positive benefits, such as building family resilience and making the most of the moving experience.
- April 2023: Defense Public Health psychologist offers tips to help children cope with change Military children experience many unique and exciting experiences and challenges as a result of their parents' service. Behavioral health intervention strategies that can effectively help military children manage stress include providing healthy outlets for emotions; integrating family, school, and social support; and fostering healthy stress management strategies, such as maintaining routines, sharing positive affirmations, practicing relaxations techniques, and engaging in physical activity. Equipping military children with healthy coping skills, helps foster positive outcomes.
- March 2023: DOD hopes to raise awareness about dangers of Fentanyl Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid primarily used to manage chronic health conditions, such as advanced-stage cancer. Despite fentanyl's effective use for serious pain management concerns, it should never be used for short-term pain due to being addictive. Multi-colored fentanyl pills, nicknamed “rainbow fentanyl," come in a variety of bright colors, shapes and sizes, potentially making them more attractive to children and young people.
- December 2022: Mixed messages can fuel stigma, prevent Soldiers from accessing behavioral healthcareStigma refers to negative attitudes and beliefs about people, places or things. Stigma can lead to labeling, stereotyping and discrimination against a group of people, such as those who seek care for mental or behavioral health issues. Stigma is often associated with fear, a lack of knowledge and a need to blame someone. People may stigmatize themselves due to their own beliefs or perceptions.
- September 2022: Army experts highlight findings, recommendations from 10 years of suicide studiesFor more than a decade, surveillance data has been collected and analyzed on suicides, suicide attempts and suicidal ideations. Epidemiological consultations, known as EPICONS, help expand understanding of the risk and protective factors that impact suicide among Soldiers.
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