Vietnam War Suicide

In world war I and II, returning soldiers were recognized as heroes. The war in Vietnam completely changed this perspective as returning soldiers were frowned upon and strongly criticized. Anti war protests and the media turned the American people against returning soldiers. Veterans began committing suicide when they Witnessed first hand that their own country didn't care for or support them. Soldiers and veterans suffer immensely from mental disorders resulting from the horrors they've witnessed in war. Suicide is a result of every war, as returning veterans struggle coping with their new lives. What went wrong with the war in

Vietnam that made it's veterans commit suicide more than any other U.S. War in history?

The Cold War struck

Young men who went off to fight in World War I and World War II were respected and seen as heroes upon their return home. Vietnam veterans who were coming home were seen as criminals and were strongly opposed by the American people. Vietnam was one of the first wars where the media had a strong influence on the people. The media sent reporters to the battlefields in Vietnam to directly report the horrors of war and what the American soldiers were actually doing. People were horrified when they saw all of the civilian injuries and deaths that resulted from artillery and firefights; people saw the American soldiers as the villains rather than the heroes. After years of fighting, America fell to northern Vietnam. The guerilla warfare of the Vietcong in the south and the NVA was too much for American military forces. The war in Vietnam was the first war that the United States actually lost. The American people saw the war as a failure because nothing really happened, no major ground was taken by either side. When the conflict initially started, the American people had no idea why their country was even entering another war. The media strongly influenced the opinion of the people with pictures, articles, and songs protesting the war. Streets were filled with anti war protests carrying signs and speaking their minds about their disapproval of the war. Anti war activists saw returning soldiers as"baby

The conflict in Vietnam left numerous of returning American soldiers with both physical and psychological scars from their brutal first hand experiences in war. A large handful of veterans also suffered effects from agent orange. Agent orange was a chemical defoliant in which military aircrafts would drop over heavily wooded areas to destroy the NVA and Vietcong's natural cover of the dense jungles. Agent orange proved itself useful when used against the enemy, although this wasn't always the case as friendly fire often occurred leaving American soldiers with skin diseases and cancers. Psychological problems sadly stuck with veterans after the conflict. Years after the war, and after returning home to a somewhat normal lifestyle, a majority of veterans suffered from post traumatic stress disorder. Post traumatic stress disorder also known as PTSD is a delayed effect of the mind that includes severe cases of anxiety, regularly occurring panic attacks, and severe cases of rage. psychological disorders often led to divorce, drug abuse, and especially suicide. The war in Vietnam had the most cases of suicide amongst veterans than any other war in American history. More cases of psychological disorders resulted from Vietnam rather than World War I and II because unlike the two world wars, Vietnam wasn't a war with straight battle lines of back and fourth fire in which the position of the enemy