Overall, the annual rate of self-inflicted injuries among both males and females ages 10 through 24 increased from 201.6 per 100,000 to 303.7 between 2001 and 2015. But among males, self-inflicted injury rates remained stable, the researchers found. Females alone contributed to the upward trend. The annual rate of self-inflicted injuries among females 10 through 24 rose from 245.5 per 100,000 in 2001 to 434 per 100,000 in 2015, an increase of 8.4% each year.

Women are more likely than men to experience instances of sexual harassment, sexual discrimination and rape in the military and the resultant mental health issues, or what female U.S. military vet Letrice Titus called "military sexual trauma."