It is called “the gloom period,” when the pewter skies seem to mirror the gray fortresslike buildings on campus, and cadets hustle from class to class to avoid the cold winds whipping off the Hudson River.
But this winter, the somber mood at the United States Military Academy has been deepened by two recent suicides among the 4,400 cadets — the first since 1999 — as well as two suicide attempts last month. Those followed two suicides last summer by staff members, and come as the Army is grappling with a record number of suicides among its members, many of whom have endured long deployments to war zones.
Last week, the academy — where the Army trains its future leaders and admission is highly prized — began a “stand down,” 30-day suicide-prevention program with an Army-wide training session that includes a new interactive video. It depicts a suicidal soldier and choices he confronts as he spirals downward: One set of choices leads to improved mental health, the other to tragedy.
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