I have had the opportunity to speak with and counsel thousands of servicemembers and their families, contractors, and hundreds of Department of Defense civilians about military deployments and separation. Many of these individuals were not prepared for the issues surrounding being separated from their loved ones. Deployments can unfortunately bring on the possibility of combating depression and loneliness. Although not everyone copes the same way, I believe there are hundreds of activities that can help a person thrive during a separation. Therefore, I bring you a sample of these activities as 5 tips everyone should know before a Military Separation.
5. Stay in contact:No matter where you are stationed; close to home or far, far away… staying connected with family and friends can be the difference between surviving a deployment and thriving during a deployment. Set-up an email account and commit to writing one family member or friend a day. Even if you have no news to speak of, writing a letter or email can help you stay focused and may act as a form of journal. Your friends will most likely return the favor and write you back. You can use this as a form of pen pal writing. This will help you stay in the loop with issues and event happenings back home and in touch with people that care about you.
4. Use your Local Family Readiness Groups:Realistically, you may not like everyone in your community or even be able to stomach them all. Not all the spouses in your local Family Readiness Group will even be nice to you or support you in a way that you need. This is one major complaint about local FRG’s; pettiness and gossip. However, the good far outweigh the bad. There are so many spouses that will reach out and assist you in your time of need. Remember, you also have a shoulder to offer for another spouse that is going through a rough patch during a deployment. Use this resource. You will not regret your choice to reach out. You may even make new life-time friends.
3. Take a Class:Visit your local Education center, Community Services, Morale Welfare Recreation center, or athletic gymnasium. Whether you want to learn about ancient Rome, take an aerobics class, learn CPR, or how to update your resume, getting your body and mind in shape will help pass the time while your loved one is deployed. Remember, this will give you a chance to broaden your horizon as well as focusing on something other than your servicemember.
2. Support Your Troops:It’s the small things that we do that sends the loudest messages to the rest of the world. We all have a need to display symbols of what our military community means to us. It gives us a great sense of pride to be able to demonstrate our love for our troops. Examples may be: Wearing a red outfit shows your neighborhood that you support your troops overseas. Tell everyone why you chose to wear red. Spread the word that our troops are deployed around the world. Also, tie yellow ribbons around the trees in your area. Show the world you support your servicemember. Canvas the whole neighborhood. Enlist the help of your friends.
1. Send Care Packages:Boost your servicemember’s morale with a care package. Cookies, chips, stationery, and magazines brighten up long deployment hours. Go to your local post office to find a list of what you can and can’t send. Your servicemember will appreciate it. There’s nothing like receiving mail during deployment.
Warmest regards,
Marc basic training, book, deployment, family member, military
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