Turmoil of depression in ‘macho military’

A ROYAL NAVY aviator who survived a suicide bid has told of the difficulties of fighting depression in an "alpha male" environment.

- By Marco Giannangeli DEFENCE EDITOR

Lt Cdr J Harms's words were printed in an RAF magazine, a week after the inquest of former fastjet pilot Richard Woods, who killed himself by driving the wrong way on the M6 and hitting another car. The family in the other vehicle also died.

Writing in Air Clues Magazine, Lt Cdr Harms, a former aviator with the Fleet Air Arm, told about the "endless waves of emotion" that "this invisible black cloud" triggered.

He said: "The 'whys' kept me up at night, causing me to float through each day in a state of exhaustion...

"Why was my brain broken? Why had depression picked me? Why couldn't I just pull myself together? Why couldn't I jump into a cockpit and help the squadron out? Why couldn't I function normally? Why me?