Military life can be hard. Perhaps your soldier will not tell you the details of a deployment to prevent you from worrying too much. While this approach may be well meaning, not knowing details may create even more concerns, worries and/or questions. Do they get to eat regularly? Are they sleeping well, do they have enough time to rest and sleep? Are they engaged in combat or are they safe?

Thus, one could imagine that for every service member, there is a family member worrying. Military families can live with stressful moves, which can happen quite often, and nerve-racking absence of a parent/spouse. Deployments may be even more stressful as emotions can run high due to the increased worry and distress associated.

Life for Military Children

Children with a parent in the service may feel insecure, which is common among children faced with a great deal of change. They may be
missing a deployed parent. They may be affected by a lot of movements or transfers. They may feel as if they have few friends and are always adjusting. They may find difficulty developing serious friendships. Because children are so perceptive, they may begin to worry about the same things their parents are concerned with. Lacking the ability to express their feelings and thoughts as effectively as adults, they may express these thoughts and feelings in negative ways.

Life for Military Spouses

With each deployment or movement, there is a spouse that may be feeling left with the responsibility of being the mother and the father to their children. Spouses can be just as affected by the numerous changes and adjustments – possibly transferring to a new community, losing their jobs, losing close relationships and having to live with worry of having a deployed loved one. Young couples can suffer emotionally with the distance, the movements and the tortured thoughts of danger. Many military marriages can be tested by each deployment. While the military spouse may need all the support he/she can get, the same can be true for their family back home.

Finding the Strength to Go On

Parents can benefit from paying attention to their children’s emotional needs. Children can be quite sensitive when the family is in a distressful state. Talking to your children and providing them with loving reassurance may help them in getting through these trying times. You may want to also watch for signs and symptoms of emotional turmoil. Seeking professional help can be helpful in such situations. When your spouse is away, you may be the only parent your child can turn to. You may not only feel that you need to be strong for your children but also for yourself.

When your military spouse is deployed, you may feel in-effective when you are not receiving support yourself. You don’t have to feel lost. Carolina Counseling Services – Fayetteville, NC can be there to provide that support, so you can be strong for yourself and your military family. Call CCS today to schedule your first appointment with a licensed, independently contracted therapist.

Related Articles:

• Adjusting to the Changes Caused by Deployment
• The Adjustments that Military Spouses may Face with a Deployment
• Saving your Household from Deployment Crisis
• Deployment: When Families Adjust
• Discovering Fulfillment Despite Deployment
• Staying Happily Married During Deployment
• Reintegration: What a Military Spouse Should Know