Fast fact: Our blog will publish it’s 3000th (yes, you read that right!) blog post in 2023. All of the content is brought to you by empowered experience volunteer bloggers and insightful expert bloggers. You name a topic that a military spouse or organization could write about, we’ve probably got it. Current topics include PCS, deployment, parenting, finances, solidarity, humor, milspouse experiences, expert advice, and more. And if you don’t find what you’re looking for, you can always join us as a blogger to share your story!
March is Brain Injury Awareness Month, but those of us who have a loved one with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) don’t need a month. We live it every single minute of every single day.
My husband served in the Army for 17 years. We have been married for 14 years. Most of those 14 years were while he was still serving his country.
Our world was turned upside down when he suffered a TBI.
Eating disorders occur more often among active-duty service members and veterans than among the general population. There are many reasons for this: perfectionism, past trauma, making weight requirements, weight and shape stigma, and mental health stigma. But what about military spouses and children? Do they experience eating disorders as well?
Short answer: Yes, they do. From external circumstances to challenging family dynamics, there are several possible contributors to eating disorders in military dependents:
When you find out a deployment is on the horizon, everything begins to be filtered through a new lens—the lens of deployment.
I’ve had the great opportunity to go through three deployments in my marriage: the first we were married for six months and had 30 days notice, the second we had six months of notice, and the most recent, I had a whole total of a week’s notice. I’ve experienced that prepping for a deployment can look different depending on how much time you have, and truthfully, how long your service member will be gone.
There are countless resources for those facing a deployment. I have consolidated a number of them here for you. However, if you feel like you’re missing something specific to you, then take the reins and do a little digging. There is a good chance that someone else has asked that question and has posted about it online!
Deployments are seasons. Just like military life has seasons, deployment is one of those. Within deployment, however, I like to think of them as almost micro-seasons. There are a lot of ups and downs that come along.
I joined the Army Reserve nearly four years ago, and I’m grateful for all the lessons learned and experiences that being a Reservist has brought me. I definitely would not be the person that I am today had I not made the decision to join right out of high school.
Here are a few lessons I’ve learned along the way:
Your spouse comes home from work, tosses the car keys on the hook, squeezes the kids.
Then, turns to you and says, “Honey, I have good news and I have bad news. Which do you want first?”
Here are the top stories for the week of March 15, 2021, straight from AWN News 6 Correspondent, Jolene McNutt:
• Defense Secretary Announces Priorities
• Improvements to Military Working Dogs Program
• USO Announces Global Ambassadors
• This Week in History
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