Early mental health treatment-seeking among U.S. National Guard soldiers deployed to Iraq

The authors examined rates of and factors associated with postdeployment treatment-seeking in a panel of 424 National Guard soldiers who spent 16 months in Iraq. Soldiers completed a self-report, mailed survey 3- to 6-months after returning home. Approximately one third of respondents reported postdeployment mental health treatment. Those who screened positive for mental health problems were more likely to indicate that they had received treatment compared to those who screened negative, but over one half of those who screened positive were not engaged with mental health treatment. Variables related to reported treatment receipt included positive attitudes about mental health therapies, having been injured in-theater, illness-based need, and having received mental health treatment while in-theater. Implications and future research directions are discussed.