Lessons learned from efforts to prevent behavioral health problems and promote mental wellbeing in the US military

The global economic burden of mental health disorders is substantial and continues to increase. To reverse this devastating trend, solutions are needed to not only treat but to prevent the emergence of mental health conditions negatively affecting an individual's health and their social and occupational functioning. Given that military personnel and their families experience a number of factors that may serve to elevate risk for mental health problems (e.g., separation from sources of social support, job-related stress and trauma exposure, combat), the US military has instituted a number of programs to prevent mental and behavioral disorders, which may provide benefit to civilian contexts. The present paper overviews military programs that seek to build individual resilience, utilize social support and peer support programs for preventing mental health problems, and emphasize the role of early identification and treatment for preventing worsening or continued distress. We propose these programs can be adapted for and implemented into civilian settings for mental health prevention. Parallels are drawn between military and civilian settings, with proposed recommendations and considerations for adaptation discussed. Civilian communities may benefit from the lessons learned from implementation in military settings to inform their own prevention strategies.