Memorial Day: A Day of Remembrance, Hope, and Help

More than a Barbeque

Many Americans are looking forward to the long weekend and the official start to the summer - Memorial Day is when swimming pools open and neighbors gather around backyard grills. But for thousands of Americans, Memorial Day is more than just a day off work; it is instead a somber day of remembering lost loved ones. 

Once known as Decoration Day, Memorial Day is a meaningful holiday for families and friends of soldiers who died in service to the United States. However, there is a devastating reality that makes Memorial Day even more painful for some of those families: more soldiers - wounded in invisible ways - die after they come back home than are killed in battle.

Decoration Day

Dating all the way back to the American Civil War, Memorial Day - or, as it was originally called, Decoration Day - was a holiday commemorating soldiers who had died in American wars. Family and friends would gather to lay flowers on the graves of those whom they had lost in battle. Today, Memorial Day is observed nationally with the laying of a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery, and locally with parades and speeches.

A Devastating Reality

While widely understood as a way to remember those who died while deployed overseas or in active wartime, many loved ones of lost soldiers know the heartbreaking truth: more soldiers die by suicide after they return home than are killed in combat - four times as many, in fact. Here’s another tragic statistic: military personnel are at 50% higher risk of suicide than their non-military peers. What we know is that a large percentage of veterans are diagnosed with PTSD after returning from combat, and one in ten veterans suffer from substance abuse. The correlation between PTSD, substance abuse, and suicide risk is a painful reality. However, the military suicide crisis is not without hope.

There is Hope!

Lotus Recovery Centers are committed to helping change these distressing statistics. We offer rehabilitation and treatment programs for veterans and service members suffering from substance abuse. Through medication-assisted treatment, individual counseling sessions, group therapy, and abstinence-based treatment, we are here to help.

How You Can Help

We are privileged to serve those who have served our country through our Veterans Treatment Program. We have a dedicated Veterans Liaison, Jack Hartman, who is a veteran himself and knows firsthand the unique struggles service members face. If you know someone who suffers from service-related PTSD and you suspect they may be struggling with addiction, gently and lovingly refer them to us by clicking here LotusRecoveryCenters.com , or reach out to Jack Hartman by calling (304) 5453-0209. We have centers in Delaware and West Virginia, and we see clients from all over the Northeast and South. 

Finally, as you enjoy the long weekend this Memorial Day, remember our fallen heroes - not only those who have died while deployed, but the ones we lost after they came home.