Welcome to Military Life: Support Resources for Military Families

If you've recently married into the military or you or your spouse has just joined, you may feel both nervous and excited about the future. If you have children, there may be extra challenges and considerations as well as new opportunities for you and your family.

During the adjustment period, family members often have to form new roles, adapt to new schedules, learn new ways of doing things and develop ways to compromise. Dealing with challenges related to military family life may be easier if you know about the resources that are available to help families through these challenges. Your installation Military and Family Support Center is a good place to start, for anything from local recreational opportunities to a personalized introduction to installation services including spouse career and employment opportunities, personal financial management classes, activities for children and families, and more.

Deployment

You can ease some of the stress of deployment by preparing for separations. These resources can teach you strategies to help your family adjust during deployment:

For spouses:

• "These Boots: A Spouse's Guide to Stepping Up and Standing Tall During Deployment" is a recording that offers spouses suggestions and strategies on how to cope before, during and after deployment.
• "Staying Positive During Your Partner's Deployment" is an article with resources and tips on how to grow individually and as a family through a deployment.

For young children:

• "I'm Here for You Now" is a board book designed to support and reassure younger children who are experiencing a parent's deployment or a particularly challenging time.
• Sesame Street's "Talk, Listen, Connect: Deployments, Homecomings, Changes" is a multimedia program that helps children between the ages of 2 and 5 communicate feelings and concerns that they may have during different phases of deployment. 

For youth and teens:

• Military Youth on the Move offers older children tips and advice on adapting to life on the move.
• Military Kids Connect invites youth and teens to share how they cope with the challenges of military life.

Relocation

Military families move every two to three years. If you aren’t used to it, relocation may be a new, and perhaps, unnerving experience for you. These resources can help you manage the move:

• "What the Relocation Assistance Program Can Do for You" is an article that describes relocation support services to help you plan your move.
• MilitaryINSTALLATIONS provides you with information about services and programs available to you on your new installation.
• Plan My Move is a web-based relocation tool that lets you estimate moving expenses, keep a calendar of events, find forms that you need and use other planning tools to make your move go smoothly.

Changing careers

Family members may have to place their careers on hold or change careers completely when they relocate to a new area. These resources can help you manage career change challenges:

• The Spouse Education and Career Opportunity Program provides expert education and career guidance to military spouses worldwide.
• USA4 Military Families works with the Department of Defense and state legislators to modify licensure requirements for military spouses who want to maintain their licenses as they move from state to state.
• The Military Spouse Employment Partnership connects spouses with more than 295 employers who pledge to recruit, hire, promote and retain military spouses in portable careers.

Use the resources and tools that your installation and Military OneSource offer to help make your family’s transition into military life as smooth as possible and to help them face challenges successfully.