Prince’s sergeant: Our mate’s suicide was so avoidable. . . but at least we can say now that he did NOT die in vain
IN Afghanistan, Warrant Officer Nathan Hunt saved British soldiers’ lives by finding Taliban bombs. Now his legacy will be a 24/7 helpline for serving personnel with mental health issues. I think he would be very proud. But it remains a tragedy it took his suicide for the Government to finally take responsibility for traumatised troops.
As a serving soldier suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, Nathan deserved the best care possible. He told me the care he received was ‘useless’. His parents are convinced, and I agree that around-the-clock care could have prevented his death.
Now, for the first time, Armed Forces personnel, including more than 5,000 who have been diagnosed as having mental disorders, will be able to speak to the military’s best counsellors any hour of the day or night on a dedicated helpline.
No longer will PTSD victims in the ranks – men like Nathan who experienced the horrors of frontline combat in Afghanistan – be expected to queue up with Saturday night drunks at their local hospital if they suffer a relapse. What a disgrace that was.
I knew Nathan for more than ten years. We had more in common than being Royal Engineers and soldiers in Prince Harry’s desert reconnaissance unit. We were also both PTSD sufferers. I have experienced the same loneliness and isolation that the condition caused Nathan to experience.
I think a lot of issues came to a head for Nathan at New Year when he killed himself. But these problems had been stewing for years and should have been dealt with better by the Army.
It didn’t sit well with Nathan that so many British soldiers died unnecessarily in Afghanistan because top brass ignored safety procedures about Taliban IEDs (improvised explosive devices). He was present at times when this happened and he felt like his advice was ignored. Nathan would, quite wrongly, blame himself. He wasn’t at fault, the blame lay with the chain of command.
I was also with Nathan in Helmand province when we saw some horrific sights. He and I were in a compound with Afghan National Army soldiers when a Taliban 107 rocket exploded. I’ve never forgotten clearing up the mess and removing the bodies.
Nathan didn’t either, judging from the conversations we shared.
Nathan and I also took the controversial anti-malarial drug Lariam in Afghanistan in 2007. We took it for about six weeks before throwing it away because it made us feel so sick.
Since then, hundreds of British soldiers have reported side effects such as hallucinations, depression, sleep deprivation and anxiety. I guess we’ll never know whether Lariam was a factor in Nathan’s death.
From speaking to other soldiers who served with Nathan, another issue was how the Army mismanaged his career. Months before his death, Nathan was removed from his regiment and sent to train reservists. The move came with a promotion but he did not want it. Given his vulnerability as a mentally ill soldier, top brass should have thought twice about moving him. He belonged with his friends in an active fighting unit not a posting to the Territorial, Army. To him, this felt like leaving the military.
Every time the Army posts a PTSD sufferer to a new location, this interrupts their treatment programme. I know from bitter experience what it is like to share your life story with a new counsellor you’ve never met before. It is so painful, starting again, describing incidents and feelings which are making your life impossible.
The 24/7 helpline is a significant step forward. The helplines run by various military charities were not integrated with DCMH (the Armed Forces’s mental healthcare organisation) at all. A helpline run in conjunction with DCMH will be able to offer more effective counselling at a time of crisis.
If the helpline leads to a drop in the numbers of personnel being discharged on mental health grounds, it will save the MoD money – because last year almost 400 highly trained and experienced troops left the Armed Forces because of these issues. That figure proves the level of care wasn’t good enough.
So well done to The Mail on Sunday and Lord Dannatt for campaigning for the helpline and to the Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson for listening to his troops.
This is more than a helpline. It is a lifeline.