Marine drill instructors are famously tough. In fact, they hold one of the military's "most iconic jobs" as they get new recruits ready for battle, notes a joint story by the Washington Post and Military.com. Less well-known is that they are held to such high standards and unrelenting pressure that suicides among instructors are alarmingly common. The investigation documents seven in the past five years, three of them coming in a span of three months in 2023 at the Marines' Parris Island base in South Carolina. The story also cites an internal Marine Corps study from 2019 showing that 29 drill instructors either took their own lives or acknowledged wanting to do so in the previous decade. Researchers also found high rates of divorce and addiction.
So what's going on?
- "Critics and relatives of those who died accuse the Marine Corps of fostering an environment that contributed to their deaths. They describe routine 90-hour-plus workweeks, sleep deprivation and an always-on culture that frequently caused the job's requisite intensity to seep into their personal lives, igniting disputes with loved ones. Others detailed bouts of depression or alcohol dependency."
The story notes that the Marine Corps culture discourages instructors from displaying emotions beyond anger, fostering "unrealistic expectations," says one former Marine. Read the
full story, in which a Marines spokesman says the corps is studying the issue and offering support services.
(If you or someone you know is struggling, call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting 988.)
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