The Deployment Of A Family Member - 1748 Words

Many military families in the United States are experiencing multiple deployments as our country continues to send more troops to Iraq and Afghanistan, and the effects on their families are becoming more severe. The deployment of a family member can definitely be a difficult time for loved ones. Currently, families are experiencing the affects of the deployment cycle and it is putting many people under a lot of emotional stress. More than 1.2 billion families have an active-duty parent or spouse (The Long War). Although it affects every family differently, the phases are all the same. Preparing for a family member to leave can be one of the hardest phases of the deployment cycle, this is called â€Å"pre-deployment.† During this time, spouses†¦show more content†¦Sometimes, the deployed spouse has trouble â€Å"getting back into the swing of things† like managing money and household routines. These phases seem to affect every family in many different ways, posi tively and negatively. Throughout the deployment process, children seem to be the most affected in the family when their loved one is about to leave them for a long period of time. The earliest war-time deployment in history was back during World War II (Lester and Flake). This had to have been an extremely tough time for families considering how brutal this particular war was. About 40% of children in active-duty families are younger than five years old. Out of this 40%, 14% of the children have school issues: failing, having little to no interest in learning and their work, and problems with their teachers. More than half saw their grades fall when one of their parents was deployed. School-aged children seem to have more effects when a parent is deployed. Studies show that the older the child, the more likely it is that they will use drugs and consume alcohol (Lester and Flake). According to Patricia Lester and Eric Flake, â€Å"school-aged children show higher levels of emotiona l and behavioral distress.† Being in school while a parent or other family member is deployed can be hard on that child, but they should