Blogs

Mental Health Awareness Month: Resources for Soldiers

05/11/2023
The month of May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Mental Health Awareness Month has been observed in the U.S. since 1949. In the past few years, the Army has looked at its resources and programs available to Soldiers and worked to improve upon them based on the feedback from and needs of Soldiers and leaders.

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Finding Peace of Mind

05/04/2023
Each of us goes through challenging times. Whether it’s loss of a loved one, divorce, loss of a job, or some other draining event, we will have to get through it and move on.

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Keeping a Journal Can Be Good Medicine

02/02/2023
Resilience is about coping with setbacks. It’s about finding the strength to respond to life’s challenges. There are many setbacks in life one must meet and overcome. One of those challenges is the loss of a loved one.

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Peer-to-Peer Influence in the Prevention of Harmful Behaviors

01/12/2023
Over the past few years, the Army has been updating and developing policies and directives to better prevent harmful behaviors. Since 2020, a few committees and commissions have done a deep dive into harmful behaviors within the DOD and the Army to find more effective methods aimed at tackling these behaviors.

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New Goals for the New Year? R2PCs Can Help Your Journey

01/04/2023
At the start of a new year, people create goals or resolutions of things they’d like to accomplish, as this time represents a new beginning. Sometimes the goals created can cause a bit of stress or anxiety, as it may be a new venture or something that has been put off for a while.

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Suicide is never the answer- Help is always available

06/01/2022
Recently, Sec. Def. Lloyd Austin directed the establishment of a Suicide Prevention and Response Independent Review Committee to address and prevent suicide in the military. The SPRIRC will conduct a comprehensive review of the Department’s efforts to address and prevent suicide.

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Junior Leaders’ Roles and Responsibilities in Fostering Connections to Prevent Harmful Behaviors

05/13/2022
Junior Leaders are in charge of squad size elements and are often new Soldiers’ most direct supervisor when new to the Army. The Army categorizes junior leaders as those in the ranks of Corporal, Sergeant, and Staff Sergeant.

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Strengthening Your Connections Prevents Harmful Behaviors

04/01/2022
DOD’s suicide prevention initiative “Connect to Protect” not only perfectly rolls off the tongue but is also backed by science.

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7 Things a Suicide Survivor Wants You to Know

1/27/2022
We all can have bad days where we may choose to isolate, sulk, or even have a good cry. For some however, these days can turn into several days, weeks, or even months feeling as though a thundercloud is looming over our heads.

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Make Your Goals Even SMARTER

12/30/2021
As 2022 begins, texts, emails, and social media feeds will be flooded with resolutions. “New year, new you” can actually be feasible and a lot easier to achieve by creating SMARTER goals. Try this method to step up your resolution game.

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Don’t Let the Holidays HALT Your Sobriety

11/19/2021
The holidays are a time to be thankful--for your family, friends, career, and your sobriety. But they can also put you around familiar people, places and things--all potential triggers that can make it tempting to steer away (even briefly) from the sober life you’ve worked so hard to attain. Being mindful of your environment and taking a moment to HALT can keep you right on track.

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Saying No Isn’t a Bad Thing

08/20/2021
Saying “no” doesn’t make you a bad person. Sometimes we need to draw the line on what we do for others so we don’t max out ourselves physically, mentally, and emotionally. Establishing boundaries sets the expectation of what you are willing to do for others while still taking care of yourself. Even telling others you don’t want to talk about a specific topic because it makes you uncomfortable is setting a boundary.

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Spanning the Split-Second Margin

07/22/2021
One tenth of a second. One inch. One slightly off centered shot out of one hundred. The difference between winning an Olympic medal and finishing out of the running is often minute, and yet often, spanning these margins remains unachievable for even the most talented athletes.

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Do Your Part to Shatter Social Stigma

06/30/2021
No one likes a label that could potentially hinder their overall quality of life, especially within their career and relationships. According to the CDC, substance overdoses and suicide are the top two leading causes of death among Americans under 50 years old.

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Recognize When to Power Down

06/17/2021
Technology has become an integral part of our everyday lives. We use it to work, learn, connect with others, exercise, and ease the burden of daily chores and activities.

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Turn It Up – Raise Your Gratitude Volume

06/09/2021
“There is no joy without gratitude,” says Brene Brown. What if turning up the volume on our gratitude could make a positive impact on our daily environment and bring joy to others and ourselves? It can! It can! And it’s all backed by science (see related).

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Those Old Prescriptions Do More Harm Than Good!

05/27/2021
Have you ever pulled a muscle and instead of going to the doctor, you took some odd pill left over from an old prescription? Well, this could actually do you more harm than good, and the Army is taking measures to deter Soldiers from using outdated medication by setting the expiration dates at six months past the date the prescription was filled.

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Tech Positive: Accelerate Your Personal Resilience

05/20/2021
Technology is meant to improve our lives, but does it? Chris Dancy, ARD webinar guest and “World’s Most Connected Man,” says a critical mistake we frequently make when using tech is that we value what we’ve measured instead of measuring what we value. In other words, we let the technology dictate how and what impacts us.

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Spring: The Perfect Time to Grow Resilience

05/04/2021
Spring is a time for rebirth, rejuvenation, and refocusing. Many people “spring clean” to get rid of unwanted items and energy from their home or barracks, but did you know that you can also do the same for your body and spirit?

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The 7C’s of Resilience for Military Kids

04/27/2021
When Soldiers serve the nation, their Families also serve. And like their parents, military kids also face some of the challenges of Army life such as Family separations during deployments and leaving friends behind during Permanent Change of Station moves.

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Your Career on Marijuana

04/13/2021
Marijuana, despite being legal or decriminalized in some states, is still classified as a Schedule I drug by the federal Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and considered an illicit substance. This includes all parts of the plant, whether is THC (the chemical that gets you high) or CBD (the chemical that calms you down).

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10 Signs You Are Not in a Good Relationship

04/07/2021
Relationships – especially new ones – often feel euphoric and exciting (that’s the dopamine in your brain doing its happy dance), but eventually the honeymoon phase fades away. This is totally normal but how can we tell if things are going downhill?

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Gambling and the Windfall of Deception

03/23/2021
Flashing lights, jackpot bells, and millions of dollars waiting to be won on table games, sports betting, and slot machines, all at a casino likely near your installation. With gambling arenas being permitted in more states, casinos and gambling apps are popping up everywhere like spring crocuses.

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10 Signs You May Have Found Your Forever Person

03/16/2021
We’ve all seen it in the movies, two individuals lock eyes from across the room, fall in love, nearly get torn apart by tragedy or a spiteful ex, reunite, and live happily ever after. New relationships are fun and exciting.

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Soldiers Are the Army’s Professional Athletes

02/23/2021
Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. James McConville, has said that our Soldiers are like professional athletes and the Army wants to give them all the capability they need to stay on the field and play their position. Thus, just like elite athletes, Soldiers need to take care of themselves both physically and mentally to perform at their peak.

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