Deployment on Military Marriages

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Deployment on Military Marriages
Deployments in the military are likely to be a source of strenuous relationships among military couples. The comprehensive separations in times of deployment, reunion, as well as reintegration, also bring numerous stresses to such couples, resulting to conflicts in the relationship and this may be damaging in various ways (Martz, Erin 24). Deployment has extended effects on the involved couples before, during, or even after it has happened. The aspects of the effects may be around the context of stress, emotions, finances and divorce among others. However, the relationship can be sustained through application of ways to rebuild these relationships for military couples. It is possible to form a strong relationship even after deployment through embracing hard-work, as well as help. There is a need to discuss the difficulties that arise in marriages before, during and after deployment.
Most people do not realize the extent of weaknesses caused by deployment until they face it. In most cases, the two spouses are faced by same challenges, whether it's one spouse who remained at home or the one that was deployed (Dandeker, Christopher & Et Al, 12). Both spouses deal with emotional and mental challenges at their respective places. Some of the issues that magnify ought to have been handled at an earlier stage to avoid extreme complications in marriage. For instance, when the spouse returns from deployment, he or she is usually handled with care, where tests are performed to find out if they have developed any Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD or the related mental issues. Little focus is put on the spouse that remains at home, which leaves the cases unbalanced. It is important to address the issues that the spouses who remain at home may be dealing with, failure to which re-integrating the soldier into the civilian lifestyle can be hectic. Thus, addressing the issues that the remaining spouse is likely to face is important if the efforts of re-integration are to be successful. In addition, even the spouses in the military find it hard sometimes to deal with deployment itself. It also becomes almost impossible to handle for both spouses especially if they had been successful as co-parents. In addition, the spouses that are very close in marriage as well as those that normally divide household responsibilities and chores may be among the most affected by deployment. In such marriages, some spouses who are accustomed to the assistance of their partner to a reasonable part of daily responsibilities are likely to feel abandoned, resentful and even angry when their partners are deployed. The reactions may later develop into guilt as well as fear of safety for their partners. More so, there is an increased rate in infidelity and divorce cases with the couples that go through or have already experienced deployment if not carefully handled. The worries of the deployed spouse are normally higher because of the worries and anxiety concerning their safety as well as that of comrades involved in such missions. Their physical debilitation can also be caused by their concern of the welfare of their spouses and family back home.
Emotional effects
The humanitarian missions, as well as peace enforcement assignments, are part of the military responsibilities. These responsibilities come along with great distress from both the spouses at home and those in the missions. The long separation is likely to bring great impact on the marriages of the soldiers. Various stages of deployments are involved which require differing strategies of coping. The stages may include pre-deployment, sustainment, deployment, re-deployment as well as post-deployment. Each of these stages is categorized in respect of the specified emotional challenges and time frame. The pre-deployment level is characterized by the anticipation and denial of loss, which is experienced when the days of departure, gets closer. The fear of what could happen during the time when a spouse is gone takes over and the partners may start complaining and arguing over trivial issues, only to end up in the deployment discussion. The impacts of the unsettled family concerns may lead to devastating results (Becvar & Dorothy, 15). A soldier that is worried may be preoccupied in personal issues and fail to focus on the important tasks in times of a tactical movement and handling military equipment. The deployment stage poses different kinds of emotions from different people. Some spouses tend to feel overwhelmed and disoriented, while others are more relaxed, not being bothered about being strong or brave. There are tendencies of sadness, numbness, and anger derived from the errands left undone. The sustainment stage emerges after a longer period of time, probably lasting up to eighteen months of deployment. Here, the spouse tends to establish fresh sources of support, as well as new routines.
The re-deployment stage bears intense anticipation where the family back at home awaits the deployed soldier. There is usually a surge of conflicting emotions with portions of excitement because a soldier is returning home, while partly being apprehensive. The post-deployment level reaches after the arrival of the soldier back at home. This stage can be frustrating especially when soldiers want to make up for the lost time, without much success and this may lead to a sense of independence loss. The reunion with children may also be challenging as the year might have passed without the presence of the soldier, thus building a gap between children and a parent. This may also bring a feeling of rejection and needs an understanding individual who would be patient enough for the compatibility to take place.
One of the strategies is to educate the health care providers, the military leaders, as well as soldiers and family. They would be cautioned to anticipate the stages as it is important in ensuring that the soldiers return is safe in order to avoid or reduce familial trauma. When these issues fail to be addressed, significant strife can emerge for both the couples and other family members. It is thus crucial to provide adequate information to the families that have not experienced deployment or lengthy separations, as well as those with experience. In addition, one of the key strategies is to promote the understanding of the levels of deployment which assists in averting crisis and reducing the necessity for command intervention or even the counseling of mental health. This may also minimize the suicidal threats that are quite common in the post military marriages.
Divorce
Divorce cases in the military spouses that have deployment experiences are quite high. This may be due to the failure of the spouses to work harder in resolving the marriage complications, thus the overwhelming challenges that lead to divorce. The military marriages that experienced trust issues before deployment are likely to be affected during the deployment period. The soldier that has been deployed may be worried over the spouse left at home with regard to their ability to remain faithful. The spouse who is left at home may also be worried that the other may be unfaithful while on the deployment mission. This may lead to a wider gap built between the two and lack of trust may also contribute to divorce. The conflicts that arise during and after deployment may also lead to divorce. Both the situations at the mission of the soldier and back at home change greatly and at times require people who are flexible to adjust, failure to which things may worsen. In order for a couple to get through a deployment successfully, effective communication and honesty are important to ma...