[Mbrown1987]

Hi, I'm writing an article on how to help kids cope with deployed parents. If any military parents could write a couple tips they used, that would be great! Thanks!

What branch of the military is your husband/wife in?
How many times has your spouse been deployed?
How old are your children?
How did they feel when your spouse would leave? (ex. did they feel like they had done something wrong, or were they angry or sad, etc.)
How did your kids feel when your spouse came home?
How did you make your children feel better?
What tips would you give parents who are dealing with a deployed spouse? How can they help their children cope?
How was your family life different than civilian families?

Thank you thank you thank you

[mcmama]

Thanks. Where is the article to be published?

I live in a community where there are a lot of air force families. We joke that the minute a parent is deployed, all the stuff of life happens - kids get colds or yucky annoying things like impetigo, some idiot at the grocery store fender bends you, etc - and as soon as deployment is over, life is serene and predictable again. Actually, it was like that in my family, my father was a civilian commercial airline pilot, and every time he was gone on a trip there was something unexpected for my mom to cope with.

Another important question for any article about military families is the effect of multiple short term deployments of several months vs a single deployment of a year or longer. The stresses are different.