Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said officers and sergeants need to check in on every soldier in their unit daily during the holiday season, saying soldiers aren’t getting enough help on suicide prevention.
In a letter released this week, Mr. Driscoll told the Army leaders to “call, text or visit” their troops through Jan. 15, 2026.
He said the holiday season can be a high-risk period because the time is often associated with an increase in incidents of self-harm.
“Last year, we lost 260 soldiers to suicide. Soldiers aren’t getting the help they need,” Mr. Driscoll wrote. “At some point, all of us need a ‘Battle Buddy’ to share the load. At that moment, you need someone to pick you up with grace and compassion.”
The issue isn’t merely an abstract concern to him, Mr. Driscoll said. He recalled an incident 15 years ago during Ranger School’s grueling mountain phase of training, when he fell and was about to give up.
“But my Ranger buddies picked me up and helped me start moving again,” Mr. Driscoll wrote. “That was an inflection point for me. I realized that no one can go through life alone. We all break eventually, and we need each other.”
Mr. Driscoll comes from a military family and said he hopes his children may join the armed forces when they are old enough. He still leans on his Army buddies, and convinced two who served with him in Iraq in 2009 to work in his Pentagon office.
“This is personal for me,” Mr. Driscoll said.
The Army secretary also urged soldiers having problems during the holiday season to seek help, saying it is not a show of weakness.
“We want to pick you up, share your load, and get you moving again. There is light beyond the darkness that surrounds you,” Mr. Driscoll wrote. “Just keep fighting through this moment, pick up your phone, and let us help you.”
