Combat and Operational Stress

Overview | What to Look For | What to Do | What to Avoid
What to Expect | Troubleshooting

Overview

When a Marine dies, whether through combat, accident, or suicide, many of their buddies will feel intense grief or guilt. In some cases, surviving members may experience distress associated with the belief that something could have been done to prevent the death. Support to help Marines and unit members cope with feelings of loss is very important at this critical time. It is important for the entire command and community to work together to provide reassurance and a sense of security for those experiencing the loss.

What to Look For

• Shock and disbelief. “This can't be true.”
• Attempts to justify or find reasons for the death
• Anger at being deprived by the death
• Guilt or blame
• Helplessness
• Sleep difficulty
• Nightmares
• Difficulty concentrating
• Numbness or detachment
• Depression
• Anxiety

What to Do

There is no simple way to deal with the death of a unit member. Leaders should enlist help from a variety of sources such as the Chaplain, Mental Health, Marine and Family Services, Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team, and Casualty Assistance as needed.

Unit members will look to leadership for answers as to why the unit member died. Survivors are especially sensitive to comments or suggestions that imply responsibility. It is important for leaders to avoid passing judgment, avoid providing simplistic explanations of the death or suicide, and avoid publicly placing blame. It is important to keep rumors from spreading by keeping people adequately informed while protecting privacy.

• Work with Public Affairs to best determine what to say and what not to say in public statements.
• Provide basic information to unit members surrounding the death. Include information such as time, place, method, and how the death was discovered.
• Contact appropriate Marines currently away from the unit.
• Announce the details for the memorial and funeral arrangements.
• Hold a memorial service for unit members who are unable to attend the funeral. Offer unit members closest to the deceased key roles in planning and carrying out the memorial service.
• Check in periodically with the Marines who were closest to the victim to see how they are adjusting.
• In cases where a large number of Marines in your unit seem to be significantly affected by the event, it may also be beneficial to consult with a Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team, which can work through the issues with larger groups at once to restore the command back to readiness.
• In the case of a suicide, the grief experienced by people close to the victim can be especially complex. The general goals of post- suicide intervention are to help friends and colleagues understand and begin the grieving process, while helping maintain mission readiness, full functioning and morale, and to identify and refer individuals who are at increased risk for distress.

What to Avoid

The idea is for leaders to let their Marines know they are safe and in good hands if they ask for help. If you can communicate your genuine concern for your Marines they will tell their fellow Marines that seeing you was the right thing to do and that you had their best interests in mind. Here are some things to avoid that might destroy their trust, close the lines of communication, or deter other Marines from asking for help I the future:

• Minimizing or not taking the problem seriously. Saying, “is that all?”
• Overreacting to the problem.
• Giving simplistic advice. Saying, “all you have to do is…”
• Telling the Marine to “suck it up”, or “get over it.”
• Keeping the problem for yourself rather than getting appropriate chain of command involved.
• Telling personnel who do not have a need to know, making the problem a source of unit gossip.
• Ignoring the problem and hoping it will go away.
• Delaying a necessary referral for more specialized help.

What to Expect after Taking Action

• Most Marines will respond positively to unit leaders taking an interest in their problems if it is done with their best interests in mind.
• The Marine will get assistance from the agency to which they were referred, and that agency will send them to the next higher level of intervention if needed, such as a mental health clinic.
• Agencies above the level of a rest and recuperation unit may not give feedback to the command on the Marine's progress unless the Marine specifically gives them permission to do so.
• The Marine should be willing to keep leaders apprised of general progress with the problem so far as it affects unit readiness, but is not obligated to divulge every detail.

Troubleshooting