Don’t do it alone.
Military family life can come with added challenges that can be particularly hard to share if you’re far from a military community. Opening up and bringing your suffering or struggles to an outside person can be difficult. Finding someone who understands the military culture and specific struggles and constraints particular to military family life can be difficult, especially when you’re living off base, or if you’re retired and relocated, or if you’re a Reservist or National Guard member or family member far from your unit.
For the one left behind
Often it feels more difficult to be the one left at home than the one deployed. Carrying the load of the family and the household while your partner is deployed can be extra challenging, and can surprise you with feelings of resentment and guilt. These feelings are normal, and it’s important to understand each member of the family experiences deployment differently. Family roles change. We may not feel as strong in our loneliness. Old scars might flare up. Ultimately, though you may be thousands of miles away from the one you love, you are united in the struggle.
